Return To The Past
by Carth
Summary: Ch 5 edited! In a sinister, XANA induced plot to get rid of Jeremie, the RTTP has gone a bit farther back than it should have, trapping him at Kadic on June 6, 1994. JxA. AU, I guess.
1. A Plastic Silicon Love Affair

**2/24/08- Hi again, guys! It's taken me a while, but I've finally finished editing Chapter 1. The story now has 5 percent less fail. Enjoy! If you want the original chapter or any original chapters for some arcane reason, just PM me and I'll send it to you and stuff. They're not too different, I've just added some things, taken things out, and stuff…**

Oy, everyone!

This is my next attempt at a fanfic. I already tested the waters with my oneshot, and it looks like there's no piranhas around, so I'll put out my longer work. I've always thought of what had happened on that fateful day that lasted seven years...and I'm sending poor Jeremie back to find out. He didn't like it. He wanted a raise. Such testy little cartoon characters…

Rated T for some language and gore. Story takes place somewhere in Season 4.

**Warning**: When I started this story, I warned that it might 'become noncanon'. Well, it qualifies as an AU now, so, uh, yeah. This story doesn't follow much of Season 4 show canon, except the parts I wanted it to follow.

**Disclaimer**: I own nothing, least of all Code Lyoko.

**RETURN TO THE PAST  
**_a Code Lyoko fanfiction  
_by CarthageAroura

* * *

**Chapter 1  
**A Plastic-Silicon Love Affair

It was a beautiful day at Kadic Academy.

The sun was shining, the birds were singing, and all was serene in the dormitories, apart from Jim playing the bugle on the roof. Well, not really, but it's an amusing thought. The grounds were quiet, as they were not yet full of small children trampling their well-kept lawns and sharing the day's useless chatter and gossip. One of these small children was a blond, scrawny little boy named Jeremie Belpois.

Unlike many small Kadic children, Jeremie rarely, if ever, used his bed. As it stood, he hadn't used it in a week. But it wasn't as though he never slept- in fact, he was sleeping at that very moment, two feet from the bed, in his computer chair. The keyboard was his pillow. His head was on the P key, typing a steady string of the capital letters, and he was drooling all over the quote, period, and question mark keys.

He probably would have slept until noon if not for his clock radio. Just as the dependable little machine struck seven-forty, a catchy tune began to flow from it- some Subdigitals number, perhaps. At an automatic response to the noise, Jeremie's eyes eased open. He blinked a few times. Still not fully awake, he wiped the drool from his face, and readjusted his glasses, which he had not taken off during the night. Wincing a bit, he touched his cheek. He didn't have to look at it to know that it held a perfect imprint of the keyboard.

He looked up at his screen, not surprised by what he saw. "P," he commented to himself.

He grumbled a bit, and pounded his backspace key. The Ps began to vanish from his screen. With a grunt, he leaned over in his seat and felt over by his bed for his clock radio, which still sang its repetitive anthem. Once he had found it, he held it up to his face, squinting until the big fluorescent numbers came into focus.

The message these numbers conveyed woke him instantly.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAUGH!"

He abandoned erasing the Ps. With a click, he saved whatever progress he had made the previous night, and then leapt from his chair. He attempted to run from it, but tripped on a leg, and fell flat on his face. Groaning and rubbing his shoulder, he got back up, and began again. He had run about two feet before tripping on a stack of books and falling again. He got back up, still persistent, and was just out the door and in the hall before he tripped over his own feet and fell once again. He let himself lie there.

He was vaguely aware of footsteps in the close distance. Soft footsteps. Then laughter. Soft, familiar laughter. A sudden shadow, and then a hand touching his own.

"Rough night, Jeremie?"

Opening his eyes, he saw the last thing he would have expected to see at that moment- a pair of fluffy pink boots. He stared at them a moment, and then found the sense to think to look up to see what they were connected to. Doing so, he saw a very welcome sight- Aelita Stones, a friend, confidant, and at most times, object of his utmost affection. She smiled down at him, looking slightly confused.

He smiled back, and then, realizing the situation he was in, began blushing furiously. "Uh... um... well... yeah...I guess…"

"Your face is all red," she continued. "It looks like you fell asleep on the keyboard again. But it'll fade, I guess." She laughed, and tapped his hand again. "Need a lift?"

"Uh...um...sure," he mumbled, taking the hand that was offered to him.

Some stumbling and giggling later, he was up. Although he was now on two feet, Aelita was still harboring a sort of amused smile as she looked him over. "You're a mess. Did you remember to clean yourself last night?"

"Ah…" He looked down, and quickly discovered why she had asked that. He was still wearing yesterday's clothing, having forgotten to change into his pajamas. His sweater was stained by drool, and his pants had plenty of dust on them from all the tripping. He gave a stressed sort of moan, and began brushing at his legs.

"I don't think that's going to help matters." Aelita grabbed his hand again, which made him stop. "I'll tell you what. Go and take a shower, it'll help you wake up. Then hurry to breakfast. We still have about twenty minutes before class."

"Uhm...yeah, yeah! Thanks, Aelita!" He faked a large smile. From the similarly positive look on her face, she appeared to buy it. Even before she turned to walk away, he was up and off. He ran back to his room, got himself some clothes, ran into the (now empty) showers, and hardly got wet before dashing out again. He got dressed, putting his sweater on backwards, leaving a comb in his hair, and dropping his shoes somewhere in the hall. By then, he was quite sure he was ready for the day, and so out the door he ran.

He ran as he had never run in his life, past buildings, doors, and other late people, though he wasn't really entirely sure why. Meals had never been important to him. Why was he so desperate to make this one when…?

Then he remembered. Flat surface. Sleeping area. He sped up a bit.

Finally, the cafeteria trailer came into sight. Elated, he put on an extra burst of speed. He flew straight in, let instinct direct him to his usual table, flopped down in a creaky wooden chair, and fell asleep immediately.

Alexandre Pepin and Thomas Jolivet glared at him uncertainly.

Jeremie groaned, sat up, blinked, and mumbled a "sorry" before they could ask any questions. He then stood, wobbled over to the next table- where he was mostly sure the three people gaping at him were Odd, Ulrich, and Yumi- and collapsed in another creaky wooden chair. Within a second, he was asleep again.

He was obviously quite late. All of the other's meals were half-eaten, except Odd's, which was currently in the process of being licked off the plate. Odd himself didn't even notice that Jeremie was there until he had started snoring, very loudly. When that happened, he looked up, and didn't even try to suppress a huge grin. "Oy, Einstein! Not awake yet, eh? Eh? Eh?" He stood up in his seat, reached across the table, and with each 'eh', poked Jeremie hard in the back. He made no response.

Ulrich glanced over at the spectacle, but kept his distance. Yumi glared at it a bit more furiously. "Oh, come on, let him off, Odd. He comes in like this all the time."

"Yeah, that's kinda the point!" He laughed hysterically, and continued poking him. was still poking him when Aelita came into view, looking quite a bit more chipper than Jeremie was at the moment. She sat down next to him, took one look at him, burst out laughing, picked the comb out of his hair, and put his shoes- which she appeared to have picked up in the hall- on his head. At this, he grunted, woke up for a second, looked up at her with glazed eyes, gave a quick " 'lo" and fell back to sleep. He didn't notice anything else, not even Odd, surprisingly enough. ("Eh? Eh? Eh?")

Ulrich, thankfully, gave her a bit more of an awake welcome. "Hey, Aelita. What took you so long?"

The pink-haired girl smiled, struggling to keep her eyes and attention from the situation next to her. "Ah, guilty of oversleeping as well. I was having such a nice dream..."

"Oh, really? What did you dream about?" Yumi appeared genuinely interested.

"Oh, nothing really, or at least nothing that made sense. But I do remember that I was enjoying myself." She paused, and then made an odd face. "And something about a Subdigitals concert in the factory. Figures, doesn't it?" She laughed. The noise stirred Jeremie, and with a groan and twitch, he was somewhat awake again. He looked up at Aelita as if to say something, and then snapped his attention to Odd, who was still poking him.

"Odd?"

"Yeah?"

"Poke Ulrich. Now."

"Sure thing, Half-Awake Einstein!" He whirled away from Jeremie, and began poking Ulrich with a huge grin on his face. ("Eh? Eh? Eh?") Ulrich didn't seem to enjoy it very much, but even as he was avoiding all the pokes, he still tried to comment on Aelita's description.

"Well, Aelita- ow!- all I have to say about that is- hey!- you sure have a better excuse for sleeping in than- ow!- Jeremie did. ODD!" He glared at his roommate. Apparently, this was enough to get him to stop- he cringed, backed off, and climbed back into his seat, but he still had his everpresent smile.

"Yeah, what'd he do, huh? Stay up too late on the imageboards?" He laughed hysterically at his own joke, which, surprisingly enough, got a few laughs out of Ulrich, a chuckle out of Yumi, and an odd look from Aelita, who didn't know what an imageboard was.

Jeremie didn't laugh, but he did throw lackluster punch at Odd before falling back to sleep.

* * *

Ring. 

The first bell harshly split the tender air of the morning. The dining hall didn't empty as fast as it might have if it were a classroom, but it did empty at a steady rate. Last out of the fray were Jeremie and Aelita, preceded by Yumi, who took off in another direction towards her first class, and Ulrich and Odd, who were several steps ahead, completely ignoring the couple and expanding on Odd's mention of imageboards.

They had been last in the parade because Jeremie had refused to move, let alone wake up, until everyone was gone. He was awake and coherent at the moment, if a bit shuffly on his feet. Aelita was walking close by him, ready to set him back up if he happened to fall over. She still looked like she would crack up any second.

"You awake yet?" she asked him, putting a hand on his shoulder to stabilize him.

"No." He laughed without enthusiasm before assuming an exhausted look again.

"It was kind of a rhetorical question." Her tone was light, but it was growing serious. "You know…you really do put a lot of stress on yourself, Jeremie."

"Huh? No I don't!" He stumbled in surprise. Aelita, true to her intention, grabbed him and pushed him back. "I'm the least stressed person I know."

Aelita made no comment.

"Okay, so that was kind of a lie. I mean, with Lyoko and all, it's impossible not to have a little stress…"

"A little," Aelita chuckled. "That's the understatement of the century."

"Oh, ha ha. So maybe I'm kind of tired." He stumbled again. "I have better ways to spend my nights than sleeping! Like, say, developing programs to save our very lives. It's what I have to do. I mean, you've never seen me on Lyoko, have you?"

"Er…no."

"I…well, I'm just not meant to be there." His face hardened. He appeared to be gaining more awareness of his surroundings, bit by bit. "I got scared out of my wits by a couple of monsters, couldn't even land a hit on one of them…and Odd and Ulrich never let me have any peace about it. It's insane! How do you handle it there?"

"We just-"

"Nah...that's beside the point. Anyway, writing all these programs, it's my way of logging those hours you guys do on Lyoko. Is that so wrong?" He tilted his head to the side.

Aelita sighed. "No, of course not. You know that we all appreciate everything you do, Jeremie. Don't think that we don't." She rested her arm on his shoulder again, this time as a more comforting gesture. "But lately, it's gotten to the point where it's seriously interfering with your life. You always come to breakfast asleep, you're out of it most of the day, you hardly ever talk with us, or do anything with us..." Her smile was gone, and she was looking listlessly to one side.

"What? No, no…" He turned slightly more in her direction, and then hesitated. "Well, yeah…maybe you have a point. But still, there'll be plenty of time to sleep once XANA is taken down. A night or two gone now won't make any real difference." He forced himself to laugh. "Now…class time?"

Aelita looked her friend up and down for a moment, a mix of confusion and worry on her face, and finally sighed. "Yeah. Class time."

Taking each others' hands, they walked together to the Science building, stumbling a few more times on the way.

* * *

Mrs. Hertz, though a good teacher in her own right, had a tendency for going off on tangents. Said tangents were long and boring, but oddly so engrossing to her that when she gave a lecture, which was often filled with them, she concentrated so much on them that she hardly noticed what her class was actually doing. As she prattled on about molecular construction or something or other, students doodled, whispered, or just started chatting outright. She didn't give a thought to any of it. 

Two of these students were Jeremie and Ulrich, who sat next to each other, right in front of Aelita and Odd. At the moment, the two of them were off in their own worlds- that is, Ulrich was off in his own world, but had difficulty remaining there, as his concentration was often interrupted by Jeremie's chatter.

"Hey, Ulrich, does it…bother you when I, er, stay up too late working on programs?" He was talking and taking notes at the same time. "Because I was talking to Aelita, and she said…"

Ulrich raised his head in general acknowledgement, and then turned away again. "I don't really dwell on things like that. I mean, yeah, sleep is good, and I have no idea how you run on so little, but, well, I have other things to worry about."

"I understand that, but…does it kind of annoy you when I'm asleep at breakfast?"

"Well, yeah, that can get a bit annoying. Odd likes it, though. It's easier for him to steal your food that way." He tried to pay extra attention to the doodle on his notebook paper.

"Yeah, but I think I'm starting to worry Aelita. That's sweet and all, I guess, but I don't want her to be worried. I may look a bit tired, but really, I'm fine." His glasses were dangling from one ear. "I'm doing my job. Nothing to make a fuss about."

"Yeah, hm. Whatever. Fix your glasses." He reached over and poked the side of Jeremie's head with his pen. While over there, he caught a glimpse of what Jeremie was writing. "Hey- you do know you've been writing out your code stuff instead of taking notes, right?"

Jeremie did a double take down towards his paper. It was indeed covered in PHP code. He blushed, and quickly covered it with his hand, though he did not erase it. "Uh...yeah, of course I knew. But you're not one to talk." He looked over at Ulrich's notebook. "It could use a bit more blood."

"Hey, you're right, thanks!" He turned back to his own paper, and excitedly added more red splotches around his stick-figure drawing of William impaled on a stick. This drawing was surrounded by more of the same- stick-figure William meeting some sort of gruesome fate, often followed by a stick-figure Yumi passionately kissing the brown-haired stick-figure destroyer of the menace.

Jeremie tapped his pencil on his code-covered paper. "Maybe if I'm lucky, Franz Hopper will just show up on his own, and I won't have to write this program to go and find him," he mumbled to himself. He began writing some more, now engrossed completely in his work.

"Wouldn't we all love that." He kept drawing, hoping that last statement would shut Jeremie up.

It didn't. Within a minute, he was babbling again. "I'm sure it'll make Aelita happy when we do find him. Happier than it would make her if we delayed it for my sake."

Ulrich looked up, opened his mouth, changed his mind, gave an indiscreet nod, and then turned away again. His attention was now married to a new drawing- one of William with his head on fire.

Two tables behind them, a similarly different conversation was taking place. However, this time, Aelita was the lamenter, and Odd was the innocent, doodling victim.

"Look, no matter what sorts of excuses Jeremie makes for himself, the fact remains that he's overtaxing himself. It's showing on his health." She was talking and writing at the same time as well, but, amazingly, she was actually taking notes. "Why can't he just realize-"

"'Cause that's the way Einstein is. He's stubborn as anything- he will not rest a day until he finishes what he's started. And in your case, Aelita, that determination's doubled." Odd seemed a bit more interested than Ulrich was, though he was still doodling. His doodles were slightly less macabre, though- most of them involved Kiwi somehow.

"Yes, I know, but sometimes, that stubbornness just goes a little overboard." She slumped her head on the table. "I mean, Jeremie must have good intentions, but sometimes I get so frustrated with him..."

"You're right about that, Aelita. Jeremie probably has the purest intentions in the entire school." He nodded without really looking at her.

"Yeah..." She sighed. "I know I shouldn't be selfish like this, but when he's all shut up in his room, he almost never spends time with me. And he said he would, too." She looked over at him. "He said..."

Odd looked up at her, looking pained but calm. "Well, uh, yanno, remind him. Tell him straight up front how you feel, and…well, you know how he is, he'll be down on his knees to make you happy." He put the finishing touches on one of Kiwi's legs. "Problem solved."

"Yeah, maybe you're right." Aelita sighed. "He's such a ridiculous child…but he's good to have around."

"Too right."

The bell cut off any further conversation they might have had. Mrs. Hertz stopped her lecture mid-word, closed the class, and quietly stepped out of the way to avoid being stampeded by the herd of escapees.

* * *

To most of the school- the sane portion, anyway- the end of classes for the day was a near celebration. For day students, it was a chance to either go home and do homework, or stay on campus for a while and not do homework. For boarders, it was a chance to drop their books in the dorm and then spend the day running around the campus destroying things. For our five heroes in the Lyoko Gang, it was a chance to sit on the bench. The bench of evil. Nobody else went anywhere near it. Ever. 

At the moment, Aelita and Odd sat on the bench. Jeremie sat on the ground in front of them, tapping away on his laptop (which he had retrieved when he had gone back to his dorm after classes to comb his hair and turn his sweater the right way round), working on the program he had begun in Science class. Yumi and Ulrich were leaning over the back, looking down on the other three. Life was normal.

They were silent for a little while, until Yumi decided that she was tired of the silence. She gave a tiny little cough. "So, uh…still a lot of time left in the day. You guys wanna do anything?"

"I dunno." Ulrich slouched further down in his nonexistent seat.

"Same here." Odd was watching a group of ants on the ground with intense concentration.

"Well..." Aelita had her chin in her hands, as if thinking about what she wanted to say.

Jeremie cut off her turn. "I'm pretty much good for now. See this? Once I'm done with it, it'll-"

"Hold up there." Ulrich did a double take to the left of the bench, and narrowed his eyes. "I think we'd better decide what to do fast, or else _she's_ going to want to book our afternoon solid."

They all looked up to see, unfortunately, the only Kadician who would dare penetrate the sacred bench- Sissi Delmas, the principal's daughter, self-proclaimed prettiest girl in the school. She was walking briskly towards them, trying to look as important and domineering as possible, which was hard when she was being tailed by two very ugly labradors- that is, Herb and Nicolas, her fanclub.

"HE-LLO ULRICH!" As she came closer, she gave a great leap forward and pushed herself in Ulrich face, shoving her elbow into Odd's face. "I haven't had any chance to talk to you lately! Did you miss me?"

Ulrich, carefully displaying no emotion, raised an eyebrow. "No, not really. In fact, without you tailing me, I've had more time to enjoy what I like to do most." He gave a smug smile, and the other four immediately sensed a joke.

Sissi didn't. "And that would be?"

"Enjoying you not tailing me!" They all laughed hysterically, except Odd, who could only be squashed. Even Herb and Nicolas laughed a bit, though they were quickly silenced by a glare from Sissi. She was, quite obviously, fuming.

"Aren't you a comedian!" She had the amazing ability to go from seductive to angry in an instant, as she had just done. "Well then, Ulrich _dear_, we'll see who has the last laugh when-"

"When what?" It was Yumi's turn to smirk. "When your _daddy_ hears about this? We've heard that a million times, Sissi, give it a rest!"

"Yeah, what would your father care about some little adolescent spat?" Aelita cut in. "He's got enough to worry about, I'd say."

Jeremie remained silent, but nodded furiously, if only to contribute somewhat. Odd probably would have retorted yesterday, if not for the elbow pressing him to the bench. He struggled to get away for a moment, and then, unexpectedly, stopped, as though he had just remembered something.

"Hey...thash kinda getssh me thinkingsh- get offsh me, Sisshi-" He slobbered on her elbow. Disgusted, she screamed and jumped away- exactly the reaction he had been hoping for. He sat up, wiped his tongue clean of all Sissi-germs, and made himself comfortable.

"Ah, thanks. Anyway, I just had this random thought. You always talk about your dad, yanno, my daddy this, my daddy that…all that stuff. But I don't think you've ever mentioned your mom. Does she work somewhere else or something?"

There was silence. Tense, tense silence. Sissi stood frozen in one spot. Her mouth hung open slightly, as if she were on the verge of talking, but yet could not. Odd stared at her, waiting for an answer. The others stared at Odd, equally curious, and impressed with his daring. Even Herb and Nicolas, who would have usually started babbling by now, were dead silent, more out of fear of Sissi's wrath than anything.

"Uh, if it's a sore subject or something, I'll back down," he interjected, failing to split the tension. "I was just kind of curious…"

More silence. Eventually, however, Sissi seemed to relax. Her lip quivered, and she stammered something.

"N-no, no, it's alright, I just…" She trailed off again. She was looking anxiously from side to side, as if the landscape would hold the answer she wanted. Unfortunately, the trees would not be so kind. She mumbled something in a voice too low to hear, and then took a deep breath.

"I…I have to go." She bolted, leaving a tiny dust cloud behind her. Herb and Nicolas, as soon as they had registered what was going on, turned tail and ran after her.

The gang stared into space for a little bit. Ulrich was the first to recover. He leaned down towards Odd, looking incredulous. "What was that all about?"

"I was curious, so I asked her." He shrugged. "And obviously, she'd rather not ta-" He caught himself before he could finish. "I mean, it's not something she wants to talk about. See, different wording." He slouched down low on the bench. "Just chalk it up as another one of Kadic's great mysteries…"

"And isn't Kadic full of em." Yumi groaned. Now that Sissi was gone, there was nothing else to do. For a while, the silence was broken only by the _clik, clik, clik_ of Jeremie typing.

Finally, Aelita, who appeared to have thought of what she was going to say before, spoke up. "Uh, well...like we were saying before... we could go into town for a little while, or something. We haven't been out of the campus for a while, right?"

"Hey, yeah, you're right!" Yumi nodded at her, and straightened up. "We all need to go out and get some air."

"Hm? Yeah, that's a great idea!" Odd's somber expression face brightened instantly. "We could go see a movie, or go get ice cream, or throw heavy stuff off buildings, or-"

"Ok, I'm all for it. Better than sitting here doing nothing." Ulrich stood up and stretched. He looked back over his shoulder. "Jeremie?"

"Hmm?" Jeremie turned around in his seat, lowering his laptop cover. He didn't seem to have heard any of the conversation.

"Do you want to go into town with us? It'll be fun."

"Uh…" He looked to the side. "I dunno, I've got plenty to do here…"

"Oh, c'mon, Jeremie, it'll be fun!" Aelita jumped off the bench and crouched by him, trying her best to put a smile on. "Besides, you really need a break."

"Well, maybe, but I-"

Aelita's smile faded a bit. "I said…" Slowly, she reached her hand across to Jeremie's laptop and shut the lid. Jeremie's hand barely escaped being crushed by it. "You need a break."

Jeremie looked a bit unnerved, but his voice kept calm. "Well, yeah, I know, I know…" His fingers crept towards the latch. "You've been saying that all day, but really, I'm on a big lead right here. If I stop now, I might miss the chance to dig up something-"

A hand caught his- not in any sort of comfort, but hard, restraining. He turned his head to face Aelita, and was surprised to find that her smile had disappeared, and her face was stony.

"Look, Jeremie, I don't understand why you're being so difficult about this. It can wait for one afternoon, can't it? You stop now, you take time to recover, and then you go back to it. It's that simple. What's the problem with it?"

"Uh, well…" His freed hand began twisting nervously. Ulrich, Odd, and Yumi were watching the duo intently, wondering what would happen next. "The sooner I get this done, the more time I'll have to go and have fun later, and the less time that the world is in danger. I've already told you this many times, Aelita-"

"That may be true, Jeremie, but you're hardly paying attention to anything else, like your own well-being, or any of us! That's not healthy for you…and it's kind of starting to piss me off!"

The words were out of her mouth before she could catch herself. Her hand trailed to her mouth, but it was too late. Ulrich's jaw dropped. Odd made an "oooooooh" sound. Yumi mumbled some nonsense. Jeremie didn't even try to hold back his shock- he was grimacing nervously, and tugging on his collar. A bead of sweat formed on his forehead.

"A-ah…I…I'm sorry, Aelita, I didn't realize you felt that…that strongly…" Hurriedly, he grabbed the laptop and began stuffing it back inside his bag. "I…I'll go if you really want me to…"

There was a short, pregnant silence. Aelita's face relaxed slightly as she looked at him- she no longer looked cold, but instead tired, forlorn. She took a deep breath, took her hand off of Jeremie's, and began to speak, shuddering. "No... no. It's okay. I know it's important. I'm the one who should be apologizing, Jeremie. I shouldn't have lost my cool like that."

"Mm." Jeremie nodded in the opposite direction as he closed his bag and pushed it to the side. He still looked quite shaken- both of them did.

Ulrich, Odd, and Yumi recovered a bit faster than they did. Odd knelt down and slapped Jeremie hard on the back. "Oh come on, Einstein, suck it up. Like she said earlier, you deserve a break. We can go see a movie...one of those really bloody, scary ones, with all the gore, and murders, and-"

"Odd, don't you think he's been shaken enough?" Yumi walked over and put a hand on Jeremie's shoulder. "Jeremie, if you really need to stay..."

Jeremie shuddered, and then looked down. "Yeah...I guess...I don't really feel so good."

"Well, then. Aelita, is this alright with you?" Yumi looked to the pink-haired girl, who still knelt on the ground.

"Uh..." She sighed, and stood. "Okay. I guess that's a good reason to stay." She glanced back at her friend. "Are…are you sure?"

He nodded, weakly.

"Ok. I guess I'll see you later, then." She tried to smile, but only for a quick second before she turned away and walked off in the direction of the gate. Yumi followed her, smiling confidently back at Jeremie as she went. Ulrich gave him a final slap him on the back ("Call us if you need us, man") and then was gone. Odd stood by him an extra moment, just looking at him.

Jeremie's hands were trailing back towards his laptop case, but he wasn't looking at where they were going. He was staring at Aelita, and stammering nonsense. "I could've done... I shouldn't have..."

Odd shook his head. "Y'know, she's right, you are overtaxing yourself. Seeya." He ran off after the rest of them, leaving Jeremie alone.

* * *

The dormitory halls of Kadic were deserted at this hour. Except for Jeremie. He occupied them. 

He sat in a corner near the end of the hall, staring at the ceiling, determined to blind himself with the fluorescent lights. He was thinking. The thoughts, though muddled by lack of focus, weren't very pretty.

_She was right, _he thought, determined not to make Aelita anything less than perfection in his mind. _I am working way too much. And more importantly, I'm ignoring her. How stupid can I get? It's Aelita, for chrissakes, the only reason I even kept Lyoko running in the first place. Stupid. Stupid, stupid me._

He curled himself into a ball, and kept staring at the light. A bug was dancing around it, repeatedly smashing its head into the bulb. _This is pathetic. Why didn't I just go with them? It was really no big deal! It might've actually been fun for a change? Why was I fighting back so much? Yeesh…I confuse myself sometimes…_

His thoughts dissolved into a muddled daydream, the details of which he could not or would not grasp, one which had no beginning or end. After a while, however, the daydream snapped out of existence, and the hall came into focus again. It seemed slightly dimmer than he'd remembered. _I must've dozed off, _he thought. _I wonder what time it is._

A large, red-suited man was step-walking down the hall towards him. Jim. So. He looked at him, arched an eyebrow, and looked away again.

Jim, however, was not so inclined to ignore him. He stopped in front of him, and somped his foot to get his attention. "Belpois! What do you think you're doing out here?"

He looked up at him, sleepy-eyed and nonchalant. "Wallowing in misery, sir."

"Well, if you're going to do that, go and do it somewhere else!" Jim marched around the hallway, hand in the air, already ample chest thrust out, as though he were making a big speech. "You see, in case you haven't already noticed, these halls were made for walking through, not for sitting in! You see, you walk through them, so you can get to the places where you can…uh…sit and wallow in misery! Well, I guess you don't necessarily have to wallow in misery, but…" He stopped, and turned his head towards Jeremie. "Do you get what I'm saying?"

"Uh…beat it and get to the dorm?" Jeremie wasn't in the mood for gentle hints.

"Absolutely! And it's a very good thing you're speaking my language now, unlike the people I worked with when I was an interpreter in the-" Jeremie wasn't exactly in the mood for stories, especially Jim's, which nearly always ended the same way. He picked up his laptop bag, brushed himself off, saluted Jim for good measure, and ran in the general direction of his room.

Once there, he slumped against the door to catch his breath. _Well, _he thought, _as long as I'm here, I guess I could...work on stuff. _He sighed, and opened the door, somehow relieved at the thought. However, two steps into the room-

_Beep beep beep beep beep beep beep!_

"Oh, come on."

* * *

Heeheee...hope I improved it somewhat. 

Y'liked it? Hated it? Tell me. I like reviews. We all do.

-Carth


	2. The Infernal Beep

**Hi again! Editing done. Story now has even less fail, and a few new, added bits. Again, if you want the original text, PM me.**

Well, thanks for the...review! Heehee. Here's Chapter 2. I'm getting close to the meat of the story, don't worry. If we were in the meat, I'd have a running note section here. I love my running note sections.

Enjoy the chapter, and the free cookies you get for reading it!

**Disclaimer**: I once owned Code Lyoko...and then I woke up. Waaaaaa...

**

* * *

**

**Chapter 2  
**The Infernal Beep

It had happened almost a million times. The moment he stepped into the room the computer flared to life on its own, beeping incessantly and displaying a cylindrical tower covered in red smoke on its screen. Though these signs was all too familiar to him, they nearly always gave him the chills, because their appearance only ever meant one thing. XANA, their enemy, was attacking.

He hated when that happened.

Involuntarily, he ran across the room, scrambled for his seat, and began typing frantically on his keyboard. He ran some scans, typed in some codes, and waited for the result. It came quickly- tower in the Sector 5 region. Perfect. He scrambled up again, nearly tripping, but remembering to catch himself. He snatched his laptop bag and his cellphone, shut down his desktop, and ran back out the door.

Thankfully, the halls were Jim-less this time. He ran through the building, out the door, and across the grounds to the forest without any trouble. As he was running, he whipped out his cellphone. If the tower was going to get deactivated, he'd need his friends to do it. He looked at his saved numbers. Number One was Aelita. He wasn't sure that he wanted to talk to Aelita at the moment. So he hit Two, and held the phone to his ear. He didn't remember who Two was, but it was someone in the gang.

There was a short dial tone, some ringing, and finally, a click. "Hey, Einstein!"

Oh, perfect, he thought.

He sighed, took a deep breath, and tried to get the words out. "Odd, I'm real sorry, but you're gonna have to cut your party short, there's a-"

"Hold on there, Jeremie- HEY GUYS, JER'S ON THE PHONE!" His voice sounded far away. "So, finally figured out what you were missing, huh? Thought you'd better go out in the fresh air and have some fun!"

"Well, uh, no, that's not why I-"

"Well, we're having some fun, aren't we, guys?" There was cheering in the background of the phone. "That's right! Yeah! You're lucky I'm the only one that remembered a phone, cause I can give you the play-by-play of what you're missing better than anyone here!"

Jeremie groaned. He was at the sewer passage, attempting to remove the manhole cover with one hand. "Odd, I don't have any time, and neither do you, there's a XA-"

"Okay, so we just got out of this movie, _Mega-Ultimatium IV_- it was SO scary. You should've seen Aelita shaking! She _really_ needed someone to put their arm around her…" Jeremie blushed, grimacing. He was thankful this wasn't visible over the phone. "And you should have seen Ulrich- he was crying! But Yumi gave him a hug- sorry, turned away after that, didn't see if they did anything else. And now we're at that ice cream place down the street. You can come down if you want!" More cheering.

"But Odd-"

"Whatever ya say, Jer, but let me tell you, you have no idea how to have fun! Oh-" There was a pause. "Aelita wants to talk to you. Want me to put her on?"

Jeremie's heart spasmed and leapt at the same time. "Y-Yes! Definitely! Put her on!" He wasn't sure he was ready to talk to Aelita, but he knew that, no matter what, she would listen if it was urgent.

There was a short pause, and then he heard Aelita's voice. It was a bit hesitant, and shook slightly. "Uh, hi, Jeremie. Are you…alright?"

"Ya think? Listen to me, Aelita, Odd wouldn't let me talk, everyone have to get back here right now, there's a-"

"Okay, okay, don't bore the girl." Odd's voice was back. "So, I don't have any idea why you want to stay shut in your room, Jer. It seems like the one thing you'd need is ice cream! Like, right here, I've got-"

Jeremie groaned. He was already running across the bridge to the factory. "Look, Odd, just shut up for a second! There's a- oh, dangit, just get Yumi or Ulrich on the phone for me! There's a XAN-"

"Them? Oh, sorry, they're busy. Just went into a photo booth. We're watching the pictures come out, and they're pretty-"

Struggling to keep the phone to his ear, Jeremie swung down the cord, ran across the factory floor, and punched the code into the elevator interface. He was shaking with anger. "Look, Odd, this is all very nice, but I can't really chat with you right now, because I HAVE TO STOP A XANA ATTACK, AND IF YOU KNOW WHAT'S GOOD FOR YOU YOU'LL GET YOURSELVES OVER HERE RIGHT NOW!" He took a few deep breaths to calm himself. That had felt good. He stepped into the elevator, and heard the doors close behind him.

There was a small pause on Odd's end. "Oh, sorry about that, I kind of dropped the phone under the table. So, uh, what were you saying?"

Jeremie was silent for a long time. He racked his tired brain, trying to think of a good comeback, but couldn't find one. So, he just hung up.

* * *

"Jeremie?"

Odd held the phone closer to his ear, shaking it a few times. No sound came out.

"Jeremie, you still there?" Still no sound. He shook it once more, banged it on the plastic countertop, and then held it to his ear again.

"Okay, seriously, Jeremie…" He sighed, and put the phone back into his pocket. "Be touchy, why don't ya." He turned his attention back to his dish of ice cream, which, he reasoned, was a hell of a lot more appealing than whatever Jeremie had to say.

Aelita sat next to him in the booth. She looked more than a bit put out at the moment, but hid it by staring out the window on her other side. However, hearing the loud, smacky noises of Odd's eating resume once more, she turned her head towards him, fixing him with a stony look. "He hung up?"

"Mmf." Odd's mouth wasn't exactly ready for talking.

"What was he trying to say?" She arched an eyebrow at him. Her ice cream, which was significantly smaller, remained untouched.

"Mmmmmf…" He swallowed, and took some deep breaths. "Eh, I dunno. He kept stopping in the middle of his sentences for some reason."

"Maybe because…you were interrupting him?"

"Maybe." He tried to look cool and nonchalant as he took his next spoonful, but his eyes widened noticeably.

"Odd…" She arched her eyebrow even higher. "That's not always the best idea, and you know it. Jeremie always calls for a reason…and it's nearly always the _same _reason."

Odd's spoon stopped halfway to his mouth. "Yeah, I know." He looked down at it, and swallowed it anyway. "But he _did_ hang up on me. If it really was urgent he would've stayed on…"

"That can mean more than one thing, Odd, and you know it." Aelita's eyebrow shot down as her eyes narrowed. "He could be in a lot of danger."

"Oh, chill out, Princess. You're just stressed out cause you yelled at him, and now you're all guilty about it." He shoveled a few more spoonfuls of ice cream into his mouth. Aelita rolled her eyes. "But still…he did sound kind of urgent. Maybe I shouldn't have interrupted him so much…"

"Or taken the phone from me. I didn't hear five words out of him." She stirred her half-melted ice cream in its dish. "I think all the sugar you've had today is affecting your brain, Odd. Please attempt to think." She looked up. "The lovebirds should be running out of money soon."

She looked over at the photo booth next to them, right against the wall. The words were hardly out of her mouth before the curtain in the front swept aside, and Ulrich and Yumi jumped out and ran for the table. They looked flustered, but generally happy. Ulrich was covered in popcorn and ticket stubs. Yumi was holding a trail of photo booth pictures with one hand, and discreetly trying to pick junk out of Ulrich's hair with the other. Yumi slid into the seat opposite Odd and Aelita, while Ulrich just leaned over the table.

"Ey, Aelita, can you give us a Euro or two? We're out." He held out his hand. Odd, seizing an opportunity, grabbed the pictures from Yumi and looped them over Ulrich's head.

Aelita looked down at his hand, and then back up at his face. "Jeremie just called. Odd wouldn't let me talk to him-" She shot him a death glare- "But I have a feeling he might be in trouble."

The couple froze- this wasn't the response that they were expecting. Ulrich was the first to unfreeze and react. "Well, I knew he called, but…" He turned towards Odd. He didn't notice his new headdress. "What'd he say? Problem? XANA attack?"

"As far as I remember, random sound bites." Odd shrunk back in his seat. "He wasn't making much sense…"

Ulrich and Yumi exchanged nervous looks, and then looked back at Aelita. "You think we should check on him?" Yumi asked.

"Well…" She looked at all of them, and then stood up. "Yes. Absolutely. I don't know about all of you, but I'm definitely going back to campus. You know…to make sure he's alright."

The other three shared a silent look, their faces growing nervous with the prospect of an unknown or perhaps nonexistent danger. However, they did all seem to favor the idea, because slowly, but surely, they all exchanged nods, mumbled "mmyes"es, and got up, stretching and making other sorts of noises. Yumi picked the string of pictures off of Ulrich's head, stuffing them into her pocket discreetly.

Aelita smiled at the positive response. "Ok, let's hurry." She threw some Euros on the table, scooted out of the booth, and followed her three friends out the door and into the street.

* * *

With a loud, metallic clash, the elevator opened onto the all-too-familiar interface room. Jeremie ran over to the interface chair, hopped in, and swung around to the terminal. He pressed a button, which started up the computer and all its fancy programs. He brought up the holomap of Lyoko, typed in some more codes, and then, having nothing else to do for the moment, slumped back in his seat. Without his friends, he was stuck, at least for now.

He supposed he'd just have to wait until the others somehow noticed what the attack was. Or until he could call again, figure out a way to fight past Odd, and maybe get to Ulrich or Yumi, someone who would listen. Come to think of it, why _had_ Odd had been so uncooperative? He knew a call from him could mean a XANA attack...but then again, when Odd was having fun, he let go of whatever little sense he had.

Vaguely, he wondered how XANA would attack them. The last few attacks had been rather dull- mostly polymorphs or possessions. Why did XANA like using those so much? They were hardly effective, after all- he was living proof of this. But, the virus seemed to enjoy them, and had even gone so far as to take one of their number as a permanent slave. XANA was now using their former teammate, William, as a sort of avatar- but why? What was the point of taking a human form, when he was all too omnipotent already? Wouldn't it be limiting, almost?

His mind had wandered like that for a while when it was thrown off course by an outward distraction. A light started blinking in the middle of the screen, right in a spot where there were no windows. Confused, he sat up and leaned in close. The light was only that- a blinking light, nothing more, oddly, wholly pointless. He stared at it.

Barely a second later, Jeremie sensed some movement out of the corner of his eye. In the box right above the light, a code was typing itself, going by too fast for him to see what it was. He startled, sat straight up, and pounded his Backspace key, but to no avail- it just kept going on and on, as though the box was only in the control of the typist, whoever it was.

Then, just as suddenly as it had started, it stopped. Jeremie blinked, leaned in again, and read a few times. He spasmed. He knew that code. Particularly, the last five words, in a line all by themselves, written in plain English for all to see and understand.

"Return to the Past…now?"

These words had just registered in his brain when it happened.

A column of white light burst from the holomap area, exactly like it normally did for a time reset. However, instead of spreading out over the area like in any other reset, it just hung in its column, doing absolutely nothing. Jeremie, intrigued, hopped out of his chair and shuffled towards it. He looked up at it. It almost seemed to stare back.

"Uh…"

For a few seconds, the column did not move. Then, without any sort of warning at all, it leapt from its post, hovered in the air for a quick second, and then fell onto him. With impossible speed, it wrapped itself around him, restraining him and pinning him to the floor. This done, it slowly began to creep over his entire body, swallowing him up like one might swallow a snack.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAUUGH!" He tried to scream and struggle against the light, but both efforts were to no avail. For one thing, he had very little physical advantage over a formless, matterless illumination, though in his case this didn't make too much of a difference. The screams, on the other hand, were quickly silenced as he was enveloped completely by the light.

Its prisoner taken, the column swirled itself into a ball, flashed, and then shrank to nothing with a small twinkle. It left no trace of the boy behind, other than the computer, still online, still humming along, blissfully unaware of anything that could have ever been amiss.

_

* * *

And there he goes. Out of my way, just where he belongs._

_Just were all humans belong, really. Ugh…it pains me to describe the ways in which these creatures irk me. Though many of them have great gifts, skills, talent, such things are wasted on them, held back by the very nature of humanity itself. Emotions. Desires. Silly customs. Too many wonderful abilities have been crushed by them._

_That boy is a prime example. Talented child, precocious beyond belief, and yet too clouded by love and desperation to be of any positive importance to me. Would he fight against me if not for love? Love for his world, love for his friends, love for that stupid little girl? No. And therefore, his humanity is a disadvantage. To me, because it creates an obstacle, and to him, because it shortens his lifespan substantially._

_Ah, yes, death. One wonderful thing about humans is that, though they are slippery creatures, in the end, they are very simple to get rid of. It was not too difficult to simply break into his codes, gain control of the RTTP, strengthen it through the use of the activated tower, and then just drop him off someplace in time. His friends, the less valuable ones, will fight me for his release, but the tower's deactivation will serve them naught. He is gone, vanished, never to reappear._

_The point of it all is, without him, his little friends lose two things- a great portion of skill, and a great portion of humanity. Without those two pieces holding them together, their efforts to crush me will quickly fall apart. And then, I will be very, very happy. Er, pleased. Positively inclined. One of those. Ahaha._

_I hope his death is painful, Father. Painful, just as yours should have been. You, another entity similarly cursed by the strains of human life. But, for you, what is past is past. Your death, my Father, will be a matter of future affairs._

* * *

Back at the old Kadic campus, things were beginning to wind down. The students outside were starting to get bored, as children usually did around that time of day. When the fun stops, one nearly always has to head back home. This was especially true for four children just entering the campus, because for them, the day's fun had definitely ended.

The four of them dashed up to the main square of the campus and skidded to a halt by their bench. They were all out of breath, but Aelita much less so- if anything, she seemed to be channeling a wild vigor from some unknown source. Something was amiss, and she wasn't going to stop until she knew what it was.

Before anyone else could say a word, she took charge. "Ok, guys, here's what's going to happen. Odd, give me your cellphone. I'm going to try and call Jeremie to get more details out of him." She held out her hand, presumably to take the cellphone. "Yumi, go to the dorms, see if he's in his room. If he isn't, we'll all head down to the factory, because that's probably where he is. Clear?"

"As crystal." Ulrich saluted her.

"Got it." Yumi gave a quick nod, and then sped off towards the dorm complex.

"'Kay." Odd shrugged, pulled out his mobile, and tossed it to her. She caught it, began punching in Jeremie's number, and held it to her ear. She turned away from the boys, humming and tapping her foot, waiting for Jeremie to pick up.

Having nothing else to do. Ulrich stared over at Odd, who was staring at the sky. Something about him struck him as a bit offbeat- for some reason, he was holding a whole bucket of movie theater popcorn. He supposed it wouldn't be too much to draw attention to it. "Uh, Odd?"

"Ay?" He turned towards his friend.

"What's with the popcorn?"

"Oh, this?" His smile widened as he held up the tub. "I was gonna dump this on Jer's head. Yanno, to get him into the party spirit. Great idea, eh?" He gave a thumbs-up.

"It's a start, but I don't really think we should bother right now. It's not really party central right now, in case you haven't noticed."

"Eh. I'll do it anyway. If there really is a XANA attack, then he won't have the time to be mad at me." He grabbed a fistful of popcorn and ate it. Ulrich, interest now exhausted, glanced over at Aelita. She was pacing back and forth, ear glued to the phone, though she hadn't said a word so far. After a moment, she pulled the phone away, smashing a red button. She turned towards the boys, looking a cross between worried and disguisted.

"No signal," she said, in a much higher voice than usual. "Didn't even go to voicemail… I'll try again." She was just hitting the redial and holding the phone again to her ear when the sounds of footsteps behind her caught her attention. The three of them turned to see Yumi running towards them, alone, and very fast. She skidded to a halt by Ulrich's side, panting.

"He…he's not in his dorm," she said between gasps. "His bag is gone, and his computer's off." She looked up at Ulrich, and, quickly as she could, picked another ticket stub off his shoulder.

"Then he's at the factory. I'm sure of it." She nodded, phone still at her ear. "Come on. We don't have any time to waste."

Without another word, without checking to see if the others were following her, she shot into the woods. The others hesitated for a moment, intimidated slightly, and then ran after her.

* * *

The trip to the factory, from the run through the sewers to the elevator ride, was awkward and tense. Aelita tried multiple times to call Jeremie's cellphone on the way, but each time, the line came up dead. She became visibly more worried as they came closer to the factory, clenching her teeth and gripping the phone as though her life depended on it. Of course, they were all worried, but Aelita most visibly so.

As the elevator doors opened with their usual dramatic flair, all four of the Warriors half-hoped to see Jeremie in his chair, looking somewhat surprised, but alright, and ready to brief them on whatever had gone wrong. But, that expectation was quickly dispelled. Though the computer was running, the chair was empty, as was the rest of the room.

Odd, looking slightly let down, was the first to run out of the elevator. "Jeremie? Jeremie? This isn't cool…where are you…" He ran for the chair, set his tub of popcorn on the top of the terminal, and began poking the shiny metal seat, as though a Jeremie would magically appear if he did. The others followed close behind, though a bit more cautiously and observantly.

Aelita pushed Odd away from the computer and hopped into the chair, ready to somehow discern from it what had happened. She placed her hands on the keyboard, and looked up at the screen. "Ok then, let's see…ah…what's this?"

One window was open, covered in lines and lines of cramped, complex code. To Ulrich, Odd and Yumi it was the equivalent of a foreign language, but Aelita knew exactly what it was. And all four of them, simultaneously looking down at the bottom, knew exactly what the last five words meant.

"'Return to the past…now?" Yumi tilted her head.

"An actual sentence?" Ulrich leaned in closer to the screen. "But what's that doing in Jeremie's pile of gibberish?"

"I dunno..." Aelita began typing furiously, closing the window and moving a few others around. "Hm...hey, there's a window blinking here..."

She clicked on it, which brought it to the center of the screen. It was, unfortunately, hauntingly familiar- a picture of a tower, blinking red, accompanied by a loud beeping noise. A tower activation signal. So.

There was a very short, stunned silence. Eventually, it was broken by Odd, who spoke in an oddly serious, yet confused voice.

"So...Jeremie _is _in trouble, isn't he?"

* * *

Wow. I gotta admit, I've had more fun writing this than I have with any other story. Ever. Hope you had just as much fun reading it.

I've gotten rid of two of XANA's nicknames. "Father" will stay for Franz, but "Facilitator" and "Prototype" I'll be editing out, just cause they seem a little cheesy. Yeah.

But anyway, thankies for reading! Next chapter is where it gets interesting.

-Carth


	3. Day One: Of Decisions, Shadows and Crazy

**La di da di da di do. Edits and stuff. This chapter's now a little inconsistent with quite a few chapters- particularly 4, 5 and 6- but I'll fix that once I get to editing them. Oh, and sorry about the enormous delay in editing- I was in France for a week and a half, and that kind of set me back.**

YAYYYY more reviews! And even some faves. Heeheee...you seem to like this crazy drabble. But, BUT, that's just the beginning. Here, we get to the fabled meat of the story. I hope this chapter is as good as the others are- it's been kinda hard getting Jer where I need him to be in the plot.

Just to comment on the anonymous review- reading over, Odd does seem to be on crack at some points. If anything, it's just me overdoing his character. I like acting crazy and unpredictable. Of course, he won't be appearing for the next few chapters, so it's not much to worry about. And I kind of toned it down in the edits-ness.

So, enough talk outta me, let's start the chapter. Or something.

**Disclaimer**: All your Code Lyoko are belong to Moonscoop. Not little Carthy. So sad.

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**Chapter 3  
**Day One: Of Decisions, Shadows, And Crazy Teacher People

The feeling of returning to the past was familiar to Jeremie- after all, he had been through it a thousand times. A flash of light, a brief, odd sensation, as though he were floating, and then a sudden thrust back into wherever he had set the computer back to, as though he had been sleeping on that spot and had just woken up. This time, however, the sensation was rather longer, although he couldn't really judge time in this state. He wasn't really aware of himself, or any of his senses, just that light, floating feeling…

And then the ground. Grass-softened, but still uncomfortable. There was no thud or landing, it just came into existence beneath him.

He didn't open his eyes. Sight just seemed to happen. As soon as it had registered in his abnormally smart brain that the trip was over, he jumped up from his seat with a start and looked around wildly, scanning his surroundings. Quite safe, far as he could tell. He was in a small patch of grass, part of a strip between a wide concrete road and a tall concrete wall. The wall seemed familiar. Very familiar, yet somehow...not.

He was somewhere in the past, he knew that much. He'd seen the white bubble way too many times to further question what it meant. He didn't remember ever being in this spot, an oddity, as the return trip usually set him back to somewhere he'd been before. But, this was no matter to him. The only thing he worried about for the moment was that he was in the past, XANA, in his tower activation, had seized control of the Return to the Past again, and he had to somehow get back to the factory, find the others, and deactivate the tower.

But first, he had to find out where he was. He began to walk a little, keeping one hand on the wall, following it until, he predicted, he found a sort of door or corner or something interesting. After a moment of walking, the stone turned to metal under his hand. He looked over at it, curious, and his eyes widened. His hand was on what he definitely knew was the Kadic front gate.

But, as he looked though the gate and peered inside the campus, he began to seriously doubt his assumption.

Sure, it looked a whole lot like Kadic. All the buildings looked the same, and were in the same spots. But while they were all still beaten with age, they looked slightly less so, as though several years had been lost to them. The grounds were the same as well, but there were trees where no trees should have been, missing benches, and vice versa on both counts. Set in a corner was the Science building, which was the most startling of all- it was missing an entire floor. Instead, there were some steel girders at the top, and the whole building was surrounded by construction equipment.

Looking over in another direction, Jeremie saw something that definitely shouldn't have been there- a house. It stood many yards from the gate, tucked away behind the school's forest. It was a perfectly ordinary house in every way. It was medium-sized, a pale green color, and sturdy-looking. The only thing that seemed abnormal about it was the fact that Jeremie, student there as he was, had never seen anything like it at the school. Not even any ruins.

Was this really Kadic? Jeremie shuddered again at the thought. To be entirely sure, he twisted his neck up to read the plaque he knew was on the post outside the gate. It was there, as always- _Kadic Academy, founded 1905_, blah blah blah. Just the same as it always said. He wasn't sure whether to be relieved or even more unnerved by this. Sure, he couldn't deny now that it was Kadic, but…something was very wrong.

Jeremie took another look inside the gate, staring at the scene, wondering. Just as he did, a tone rang- the bell from a clock. The grounds, at first deserted, flooded with students instantly, all running, crashing into each other, and jostling around to get with their friends before the class bell. There was only one problem with the scene- Jeremie didn't recognize a single face out of any of them. Sweat beaded on his face. How far back had he gone? At least five years, he supposed, but…no, he thought, that was impossible.

He glanced over at the road, as though that would give him an answer. Oddly enough, it did. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted a sodden, discarded newspaper in a gutter. The newspaper, he knew, could never lie. He ran over to it, snatched it up, brushed some mud off the front page, and read the date at the top.

_Monday, June 6, 1994_.

It took Jeremie a full five seconds to realize that he wasn't breathing. He dropped the newspaper, choked on a gasp, and crouched down on the grass, clutching his neck as if for dear life. His mind was racing, introducing a thousand thoughts at once and very limited resources with which to sort through them. June 6, 1994…no, no…that, that couldn't…it was impossible. Impossible…yet it was happening.

The weight of it hit him all at once. He'd just been sent back twelve years, way beyond the regular capabilities of the Return to the Past. As long as he had used the program he had only ever been able to set back a week or less; further reversal was prevented by the program's inborn safety parameters. So why…? He thought for a second. When the answer came to him, he wondered why he even had to think. XANA. Beyond controlling the return program, he could have used the tower's energy to strengthen it substantially- and, most likely, target it at him only. He'd gotten rid of him, trapped him. He shuddered, unwilling to accept it.

As soon as he had worked through this revelation, another crashed in. The date he had entered, June 6, 1994…he'd heard it before. In fact, he'd heard it too many times, echoed over and over on an old tape in a forgotten diary, always followed by a steadily increasing number. It was the day that the supercomputer's creator, Franz Hopper, had reversed for over seven years in order to work on his creation. The day XANA had broken free. The day everything went wrong.

An odd excitement began to well up inside him, a surge of adrenaline that shouldn't have been there. Maybe it was the shocked thrill of entering the day where all these important things had happened, or the restless feeling that came with entrapment, or maybe he was just going crazy. He enjoyed the feeling for a second, the fact that just for that moment, he didn't have to care about what he had to do next. But then it was over. And he had to do something.

He stood up, rubbing his neck, and looked down at himself. His laptop bag was snug on his shoulder. He was sure it had some notes on XANA in it, along with a picture of his friends, some stray Euros, and his laptop. His cellphone weighted down one pocket, while the other had assorted trash- some candy, paper clips, and more random Euros. None of it could meddle with time. He groaned.

With some difficulty, he tried to determine what to do next, but his brain, perhaps recovering from the jolt, seemed to be filled with thick fuzz. He began to wander away from the gate. Should he stay at Kadic, try to find answers there? Or go to the factory, see what was there… Or should he just stay in his little spot, stay out of the timeline, do nothing? Oddly enough, the third seemed to be a valid option. The soft ground, the promise of sleep, seemed to him all too inviting.

Before he could make a decision, however, one was made for him. There was a loud creak, and a shadow loomed behind him. He turned around, and squeaked in the back of his throat.

Someone from inside the campus had opened the gate, stepped out, looked around, and noticed him standing nearby. His eyes locked dead on his. Jeremie was shocked to see him- for more than one reason. Not only was he very large and scary, he was also very familiar. Very, very familiar. Mostly because of the red track suit, the headband, and the bandaid across one cheek.

"…Jim?" he said, in a tiny voice the man couldn't hear.

"Huh- hey!" He ran toward him and grabbed his shoulder, to prevent him from escaping. "What are you doing out here? Shouldn't you be at school or something?" He was scrutinizing him, trying to detect fear. He found lots. Lots and lots.

"Uh…" Jeremie had to think fast. If he said the wrong thing, he could end up trying to explain his situation to a truant officer- and he wasn't exactly sure how he would do that. So, in a burst of inspiration, he blurted the first idea that came to his head. "Uh, yes! I…I'm a shadow student! I'm supposed to be shadowing here today, but, well, the gate was closed..."

Of course- a shadow student. They were prospective pupils who came for a day to 'test-drive' a school, see if it fit their expectations or needs. They didn't happen very often, but they did happen- there had been one a month earlier in his own time. It was a bit of a weak excuse, but he hoped that it would work. His face stretched into a nervous smile.

Jim- or this past version of him- glared at him for a second, raised his eyebrow, sighed, and finally spoke. "Oh, really, well then… sorry about that, mister-"

"Belpois," Jeremie said. He had no time to think of a psuedonym. "Jeremie Belpois."

"Mm hmm, well then, Mr. Belpois-" He released Jeremie's shoulder, and pointed towards the gate. "Get yourself on campus, and don't let me catch you wandering back out here, or you may not find yourself wandering back in! You get what I'm saying? Looks like you do. Forward!" He pushed Jeremie ahead with his other hand.

"Uh, yeah, thanks!" Jeremie ran along the wall, through the gate, and onto the Kadic campus. At least now, in terms of terrain, he knew where he was going. He stopped in the middle of a clearing- one so familiar, and yet so alien- to think. Ok, so he knew what he was going to be doing now- or, at least he knew the better alternative to being punished by Jim. But he couldn't just wander around all day to make Jim happy. He'd have to make sure he really was a shadow student, at least, according to their computer systems.

This led him to another frantic thought- _Did the school system even have computers in 1994?_ He hoped they did, or his plan wouldn't work. He walked over to the nearest tree, sat in its shade, took out his laptop, and set to work.

It was hard. Very hard. Jeremie was used to modern computers, and the computers that Kadic probably ran on- large, clunky ones, he supposed- would probably be alien to him. Before this came up, however, there was another problem- wi-fi internet didn't exist yet. Eventually, he ended up using a dial-up service from his cellphone (which, amazingly enough, had limited service, though the date was just a mess of blocky pixels). Next, he had to find an access point for the school systems- another difficult task. But, after that was taken care of, it was simple for him to hack in, create a fake ID for himself, and set up a fake list of classes by picking a homeroom and running with it.

He didn't know how long it had taken him, but he was sure it wasn't too long. Thanks to XANA, Jeremie was very good at speed-hacking.

He checked his watch- 7:55. Five minutes to first period, he knew instinctively. English, according to the homeroom he'd stuck himself with. And now, all he had to do was ask someone where first period English was. Hurriedly, Jeremie stuffed all his stuff away, picked up his bag, and ran toward the crowd- a crowd of total strangers.

He wasn't sure who to ask. They all looked the same- that is, they looked away from him. Jeremie stopped and stood on the side, looking hopelessly lost in his own territory for a moment. Finally, necessity got the better of him. He ran into the crowd- and charged headfirst into someone.

He fell back onto the ground, right onto his bag. "Oh, uh, sorry, sorry!" He jumped up, waving his hands around, as if that would make it any better. "I wasn't looking, and I-"

"Hey, calm down, it's no big deal." The kid he had bumped into wasn't hurt at all, just a little surprised. It was a boy around his age, with long, scruffy brown hair and eyes of a similar shade. He was wearing a light green t-shirt over jean cutoffs, which stopped just below his knees. He had a calm, easygoing look about him, and an equally calm smile. His voice was just the same, with the barest hint of an accent that Jeremie couldn't identify. "Stuff happens, y'know?"

"Y-yeah…" Jeremie nodded his head a few times. "Stuff does happen."

"Yep. Hey, wait a minute..." He scratched his head. "I've never seen you around here before. Are you new? It's really late in the year for new students, but-"

"Uh, no, I'm a shadow student," Jeremie interrupted, now a bit more comfortable with his façade. "I'm sorry I ran into you. I just wanted to know where the English class was...they said I should go there."

The boy laughed. "Okay, now it all makes sense! It's over that way-" He gestured toward a building that Jeremie had never been inside- "But you don't have to be there yet, the bell hasn't rung. Neither do I- that's my first class, too. Guess you ended up tagging along my homeroom, eh?"

"I guess so." He shrugged.

"No, you know so, or at least you do now." His smile never left his face. "So, uh, what's your name, kid?"

"Jeremie." He didn't see any reason to tell him his last name.

"Cool! I'm Chris. Welcome to Kadic, Jeremie." The boy held out his hand. Jeremie took it, uneasily. Chris…he knew that name from somewhere, vaguely. But, whatever it was, it had nothing to do with this kid. It was a very common name, after all.

Barely a second later, the bell rang, provoking a stampede of children from all across the square. Chris twitched, as though he were resisting the urge to join the fray, but stayed with Jeremie for another moment. "Well, you coming? I could take you to the classroom, if you want."

"Y-yeah, of course, let's go." Jeremie began walking towards the building, but Chris took off running, grabbing Jeremie round the shoulder on the way and dragging him onward.

They ran down the hall, and turned a sharp corner into an empty classroom. Chris ran for a seat one row from the back, hit the chair, and threw down a book on the desk. He reclined on the seat, raising its front legs up off the floor. "Best place in the whole house." He was silent for a heartbeat, and then pointed vaguely at the seat next to him. "Well? You need a place to sit, don't ya?"

"Uh, sure, thanks." Not knowing what else to do, Jeremie walked down the rows of desks and sat next to him. It was awkward for a moment, but not for long- one by one, other students began to filter in and make chatter in the room. A few of them waved to Chris, who would wave back and introduce Jeremie. He found it sufficient to simply wave sheepishly at whoever was staring at him.

Soon, the entire class was seated. Many students were chatting to one another, others doodling on their notebooks, others doing last-minute homework for other classes. Looking around, Jeremie noticed the curious absence of a Kadic staple- cellphones. He was glad he hadn't taken his own out. He also found that there was something else missing…something very important.

"Uh...where's the teacher?" Jeremie asked, glancing over at Chris, who was looking in another direction, but snapped to attention at his question.

"Oh, the teacher? She says she comes in when she's ready to teach. That's what she told us, anyway. Or…she could just be late. Who knows." He shrugged.

"Oh, uh, okay." Jeremie looked to the side. He wondered what kind of Kadic teacher would have a philosophy like that. It seemed a bit lenient- and Kadic teachers, after all, were known for their overbearing strictness.

"You're kinda shy, aren't you?" Chris was still looking at him. Jeremie shrugged. "Eh, that's alright. You'll loosen up later on. You'll see, you'll make plenty of friends. Even more if you actually come here. We're nice people. Most of us." Absentmindedly, he glanced over his shoulder. "Where is…"

"Where is who?" Jeremie tilted his head to the side.

"Huh?" He snapped his head back instantly. "Oh, did I say that out loud? Sorry. I'm just looking for a friend of mine. I haven't seen her yet today..." He glanced to one side, and then another. The worry in his eyes was all too tangible.

"Well, maybe she's just sick or something." He didn't know what else to say. He looked up at the door.

"Yeah. Sick. Probably." He sighed, and glanced to the side again. However, a moment later, he looked up again. "Oh, here comes the teacher."

Jeremie didn't have any time to answer him before the door flew open. Through it stepped a woman that, considering her age, could only be the teacher. But she wasn't really that old- in fact, she was quite young, perhaps in her late twenties or early thirties. She was somewhat attractive- she had very long black hair, flowing to the middle of her back, and oddly large, light hazel eyes. She was wearing a sweater and slacks, which seemed a bit out of place, considering the weather. She had a cool smile on her face, a confident one, one that reminded the whole room that she was in control. Jeremie had never seen her before.

The other students knew her well, though. Very well, it seemed. As soon as she came in, many of them began to wave and shout at her. "Hey, Medea!" "How was your weekend, Medea?" "What are we doing today?" "Is that a new sweater? It looks awesome!" Jeremie didn't say anything, but instead stared, wide-eyed. Calling a teacher on first-name terms? It was unheard of- well, other than Jim, but that was another story. But this teacher, this "Medea", didn't seem to mind. In fact, she seemed to love it- she beamed back at all of them as she tossed her bag on her desk.

"Sup, everybody?" Her voice was very lively, but yet had a calm, down-to-earth feel to it. She gave them all a quick wave. "Looks like you're trying to flatter me today. Well, I wouldn't be so quick with the compliments. I still have to give you an education, because I kind of have to eat this week." She laughed at her own joke, and then turned towards the board, ignoring the chorus of halfhearted groans. "Kay then, everyone get out your books."

Chris opened the book that was on his desk, and stared at it for about five seconds before he took a double take and realized that Jeremie was there. He stood up and raised his hand, but didn't wait to talk. "Hey, Medea, we got a shadow student here. His name's Jeremie. Just thought you oughta know, okay?"

Jeremie put his head on his desk in embarrassment as twenty-eight heads turned to look at him. The twenty-ninth, Medea, was looking at Chris, a bit bewildered, but still smiling. "Ok, Chris, thank you for that. And I see we've got someone absent as well…" She eyeballed an empty seat in the back. "Kay, got that. So…" She snapped her attention towards Jeremie, and arched an eyebrow. "Shadow! Another player for the crazy parade, I see. How's it going?"

Jeremie opened his mouth, then closed it again. He wasn't really sure how to respond. "Uh…good, I guess…" His head sank into his desk, muffling anything else he might have said.

"'Good'. Hm. Nobody's fun the first day." She shrugged. "Well, Jeremie, welcome to Kadic anyway! I never really got any notice about a shadow coming in, but, you know, it'll come in the mail sometime next Tuesday. You know how computer systems are." She giggled. The rest of the class laughed with her.

"Ah, well, that's okay. Yeah." Jeremie laughed silently to himself, remembering the hacking he had done barely twenty minutes before. "Thank you, Miss...Mrs..."

"Oh, none of that. Just call me Medea." Her mysterious smile never left her face. "Medea Delmas. Now where were we? Oh yeah. Get out your books and turn to page 124…"

* * *

Jeremie was only in shock for a few seconds, but in those precious seconds, class had begun. Medea Delmas, he could see, was not only a kind and sociable teacher, but a rather good one. He couldn't quite comprehend it. He was used to teachers being strict, intolerant of mistakes, on a completely different planet from the students. But this teacher was like one big kid herself- if a bit smarter, and slightly more controlled. Sometimes, she would let the lesson stray into casual conversation- something that Jeremie had never seen happen in any of his time at Kadic. However, Medea didn't let it completely interrupt her lesson. When she thought that the class had had enough, she just went back to teaching. Even if she was midsentence.

The children clearly liked her a lot. Chris, along with several other students in nearby chairs, kept whispering small tidbits about her to him throughout the class. He had figured out many of them, but still, it was good to have facts confirmed.

"Pretty, isn't she?" one guy directly in front of him teased. "Well, don't get any little fantasies cooked up. She's been married for years."

"And you'll never guess who, either," another one behind him added. "Jean-Pierre Delmas, principal of this whole place! Wild, huh?"

"The _principal_?" Jeremie tried to act shocked, even though he was hardly surprised. "Is that even allowed?"

"Allowed? I guess so," Chris said, shrugging. "They've been here for ages. You know that little green house down in the woods? Well, maybe you don't, but anyway, they live there. Apparently, it was some wreck owned by the school before they came along, and they just decided they wanted to live there. Fixed it up and everything. Crazy, but true."

"Well, that's nice, but...one thing still doesn't fit. I've seen the principal. Isn't she a little...well…_young_ for him?" He compared his mental image of Mr. Delmas- grey-haired, suit-wearing, rule abiding- with Medea. It didn't fit. He couldn't even picture them standing next to each other.

"Oh, nah. He may look pretty formidable, but they're only three or four years apart, I think. Besides, they have a really good marriage. They even have a daughter- she just turned two."

Jeremie didn't have to guess who that was.

"Yeah! Her name's Elizabeth, and she's so _cute-_ the sweetest thing alive!" one girl gushed. The girl sitting next to her giggled. "Medea calls her Sissi. She brings her into class sometimes…but I guess she's with her dad today." Both girls pouted and rested their chins on their desk.

"Oh well, that's cool," Jeremie said. He looked towards the front, and pretended to concentrate on the lesson. "I like Medea. She's a lot more lively and understanding than most teachers I've known."

"Don't get used to it," Chris cut in, frowning. "The other teachers, well…" He let out a low whistle.

"That bad, huh?"

"Yet. We're lucky to have her first. She kinda, y'know, motivates us through the rest of the day." He leaned back in his seat again, smiling.

"Oh, do I?" Chris looked up, startled. Medea was standing right by the edge of the table, looking somewhat triumphant. "If you're so surprised to see me, Chris, then you haven't been paying attention to the lesson. Funny how that works, huh?" She smiled.

"Uh…" Chris immediately straightened his chair. "Yeah, sure, Medea. We were just telling Jeremie about the school." Chris looked over at Jeremie. He nodded. "That's important, isn't it?"

"Well, yeah, I guess I can't argue with that. Nice school, after all. Good, solid stone architecture." She turned toward one wall, and appeared to examine it closely. "Yeah, there's a crack there..." After a moment, she turned around. "Shouldn't you be paying attention to the lesson?"

"I would, but you're not really teaching." A few people in the back of the class laughed.

"Oh yeah. Sorry about that. Got carried away." She looked towards Jeremie, who appeared, if anything, uninterested. "Don't worry, we're not this crazy all the time." She walked back towards the front of the classroom. "Ok, then, so-"

Her sentence was cut off by a loud tone- the bell. Several students cheered. She looked up at the ceiling with a frown. "Bell. Always cutting off my lectures…but, no matter. You're all free to go." She gestured towards the door. Several students dashed out, while others stayed and packed up their books. "See you guys tomorrow, do your homework, all that teacherly stuff…oh!" She waved at the back table. "Hope you like Kadic, Jeremie! We're not nuts. Really."

"Uh, okay." Tentatively, Jeremie got out of his seat. Before he could move anywhere, Chris grabbed his shoulder and took him off into the wild blue yonder that was the path to the next class.

* * *

The other three classes of the morning were more or less quite normal. Jeremie did not recognize any of the teachers. Their temperaments ranged from slightly friendly to somewhat boring to downright nasty, and none of them seemed to pay much attention to him beyond general recognition. Throughout each class, Chris and other students kept him up to date on obscure facts about each of them. He didn't absorb any of them- except that, for some reason, Mr. Duffy had once bungee jumped off the main building. He wasn't too sure that that was true.

Whomever Chris's absent friend was, she didn't show up all morning. Many times during class Jeremie caught Chris gazing longingly at the door, looking disappointed with each minute it stayed shut. _Must be one good friend of his, _he thought each time. He didn't think too much of it. It was none of his business, really.

Often, he wondered why, when there were so many other things he could be doing, he was wasting his time where he didn't belong. What did he care about any of the finer points of life at Kadic in 1994? Wasn't one Kadic bad enough? Why hadn't he run from the school as soon as he could, or snuck off as soon as Jim was out of the way? He should have been more resourceful with his time- perhaps it could have been used to finally find a way home. No matter, he thought to himself. As soon as the day was over, he was going to get as far away from Kadic as possible and get to the bottom of whatever had happened to him. Do something worthwhile, more relevant.

However, time seemed to be going far too slowly that morning. Even after about seven eternities, it was only lunchtime- not class, but still on Kadic grounds. Everyone was running from their fourth period to the ugly little box that was the cafeteria, right past Chris and Jeremie, who at that moment were standing in the middle of the campus square. Chris looked around the nearby area, grimaced, and then turned to Jeremie. "Hey, it's lunchtime. The food sucks, but at least they don't tell you how to eat it. Or if you have to eat it." He laughed. "You can sit at my table. There aren't many other people there…well, actually, it'll just be you and me today, but that's alright, right?" He smiled, even more widely than he already was smiling.

"Uh, yeah, sure. Whatever you want." At this point, Jeremie didn't quite care how the day went, as long as each second got him closer to the end of it.

"You need to work on your assertiveness. But, I'm not complaining. Come on." He ran off towards the cafeteria box. Jeremie sauntered onward behind him.

The cafeteria was no different on the inside then it ever was or would be- tables, serving line, food, everything a cafeteria should have. The two boys got in line, received their food- it was apparently some sort of 'casserole', served with spaghetti and a small carton of milk- and then moved to the side to let everyone with a clear destination go past. Jeremie, who was in no real hurry, let Chris go ahead and do his scan of the lunchroom. If that was what he wanted to do, it was fine with him.

However, he didn't exactly expect him to actually find someone. About halfway across the room, he did a double take. His eyes lit up, and his face brightened instantly. "She's here!"

"Huh?" Jeremie snapped to attention.

"Come on!" He charged down an aisle. Jeremie followed him. The two of them ran past many jam-packed, noisy tables, none of which looked like they had any room for two. So, Jeremie knew exactly where they were going- a table near the edge of the box. It was the emptiest table in the place, deserted save for one girl, presumably Chris's friend. She was looking down at her food, poking it with her fork, but not eating it.

Chris got to her first. He threw down his food at the seat opposite hers and grabbed the edge of the table, leaning over her. "Hey! Where've you been? I've been looking for you all day, you missed a whole lot of class…are…are you alright?"

"Yeah. Didn't feel too well this morning. I'm fine now, though." Her voice was low, calm- and somehow, shockingly familiar. Jeremie arched an eyebrow, and took a step back.

"Well, that's good. I was kinda worried for a bit there…" Chris looked off to the side, and doing so, remembered that Jeremie was there. "Oh, hey, look who I picked up! We've got an extra tablemate for the day." He gestured up at Jeremie with a wide smile. He gave a nervous smile back, in a simple attempt to look friendly.

"Hm?" Her curiosity was finally aroused. Cautiously, she looked up from her food and locked eyes with Jeremie. As per the mechanics of eye-locking, he had to stare back- and for the first time, he got a good look at her. His heart stopped.

She was small, with a lithe, elfin figure, minus the ears. She wore a yellow top, matched with a neat pink jacket and a darker skirt. Her eyes were a light, bright green, and her short, vivid pink hair formed a sort of disheveled halo around her face. This face held the expression of someone whom, having previously been quite bored, had found something mildly to their interest. It couldn't be denied now. This was more than familiarity- too much more. He knew her. He knew her very, very well.

Wordlessly, the girl looked Jeremie up and down, scrutinizing him completely in a split second. Then, finally, her analysis taken, she took a deep breath, and spoke.

"Who…are _you_?"

* * *

No guesses who she is.

-Carth


	4. The Scientist's Daughter

**Ham ham ham ham ham ham ham. Chapter is edited. I really had to add a lot to it (3K words), which explains why it took so long. Sorry. (Remember, this is still inconsistent with Chapters 5 and 6, and will be until those are edited. Maybe 7, too.)**

Wow. I was seriously not expecting this much of a response...you're all awesome. Srsly. And I reward you with...another chapter! Yay!

Since LyokoTitan is an anon, I'll answer his/her question here. I'll have two chapters where we go back and see how our friends in the present are doing. But not this one. The first one is...Chapter 8, I think. (I've got it all planned out. It's weird.)

Again, thank y'alls! Here's the next chapter. I managed to write most of it on my last trip (all except the last two or three paragraphs), which is good. And then I edited it right at home, which isn't quite as interesting.

**Disclaimer:**COW COW COW I do not own CL COW. I don't own any cows either. My dad did, though. He lived on a farm…

* * *

**Chapter 4  
**The Scientist's Daughter

_Clang._

Jeremie dropped his tray on the ground. His casserole, thanks to the power of gravity, flew up off the tray and splattered his calves, not to mention the nearby floor. A few heads turned at the noise, but he noticed neither them nor the mess- he was busy staring at the girl, reeling, trying to take it all in. It couldn't be true. It had to be true. It was. "Ae...Aeli..."

"Huh? Uh…" The girl glanced down at the spilt food, back up at Jeremie, and then down again. She turned her head and conspicuously cast an incredulous look at Chris, as if to say silently, _who is this, why is he following you, and does he really have to sit with us today? _

Jeremie noticed the gesture, and then, looking down, noticed the food. "Uh…" His eyes grew wide. "I'm sorry! I'll clean it up, um, napkins, napkins…" Panicking slightly, he grabbed some napkins from the nearest kid that had them and began scrubbing sulkily at his shoes and the floor. The kid scooted his seat a few inches back.

"Er…" Chris looked uncertainly over at his friend. He gave her a wan smile. "A-accidents happen all the time, I guess." He shrugged, and then looked down at Jeremie. "Need any help?"

Jeremie shook his head. He didn't look up.

"Ok, uh, if that's what you want. But, anyway…" He stood up, and pointed at the girl, who stood with him. "Jeremie, this is Aelita Hopper. Aelita, this is Jeremie. He's a shadow, and I just, well, picked him up for the day." He laughed. "That's alright with you, right?"

"Yes, it's…alright. No reason it isn't." Her response was a bit uncertain, but it guaranteed Jeremie a place to eat. In an attempt to keep with niceties, she looked down at him, eyebrows raised, still a bit defensive. "Hello."

"Uh…h-hi." Jeremie nodded meekly. The area was clean now, save for some suspicious stains on his shoes, so he stood, threw the napkins in the nearest trash can, and picked up his tray, now half-empty. "N-nice to meet you." He smiled nervously at her. Her expression twitched, as though she wanted to say something or change emotion, but it came to nothing.

There was a tense silence. Chris, who appeared to be deathly afraid of such things, broke it.

"Um, so...wanna sit down, guys?" He sat back in his seat, as if leading the way for the others. Jeremie nodded again, walked over to the seat next to the one Chris had taken, and sat down. Aelita followed suit- she sat down in her seat across from Chris, picked up her fork, and began eating, all without a word.

* * *

Lunch was a bit of an awkward situation. Jeremie tried as much as possible to stay out of the way of his tablemates- to sit, eat what was left of his food, and attract as little attention as possible- but with this new development sitting just diagonal from him, this was a bit hard. Perhaps he should have figured out that Aelita, in her past life, could have attended Kadic- her father had worked there, after all. But actually sitting this close to her, watching her exist, breathing the same air- it was a bit too much to swallow in one sitting. It took quite a bit of self-restraint not to look directly at or talk to her, and even more to try and shift his focus back to his larger problems- such as the fact that he was meeting a past Aelita in the first place. It didn't work, but he tried.

Aelita and Chris didn't seem to notice Jeremie's turmoil- they were too busy doing their own thing. In Aelita's case, it was eating. This Aelita, Jeremie couldn't help but notice, was acting curiously different than the incarnation that he had come to know. She was quieter than he was used to, and seemed rather cold- or perhaps only shy, he reminded himself. Chris, who was the farthest thing from shy as far as he could tell, was talking to her incessantly about anything that seemed to come to his head. He hardly stopped to breathe or eat. Jeremie couldn't help but be somewhat impressed, albeit a bit jealous.

"Well, it would've been better if I'd known you'd stayed home," he heard him say to her some time into lunch. "I would've tried to go see you after school, of course…but now that's not really necessary. At least, I think it isn't. You are alright now, right?" He smiled nervously at her.

"Hm?" She looked up at him, pausing halfway though a bite. "Oh, right. Yes." She nodded, then lapsed back into silence.

"Well, good! It's good that you're alright…and here…learning things…" His voice faded a bit, then snapped back to form. "So, anything you wanna do after class? Catch a movie, go for pizza, maybe both?" He smiled again, a bit more confidently. "Hopefully there's something good out…"

"Huh…maybe. I'll have to check to see if it's alright." She gave a small smile for a fraction of a second, interrupted as took another bite of casserole. When she was done, she put her fork down, and then, without warning, glanced over at Jeremie, who was poking his food at that moment. She arched an eyebrow at him.

"Hey, what is i-" Chris looked in Jeremie's direction, and with a start, realized he was still there. "Oh, right! Sorry about that, Jeremie, kinda forgot about you for a second." He beckoned him closer. "Wanna join in?"

Jeremie looked up, somewhat red, and shrugged, moving his chair a little closer to the two. Chris beamed at him. Aelita didn't, but she did lower her eyebrow, which relieved some of his stress. Not all of it. Just some.

"See? That wasn't too hard, was it?" He gave a short laugh. "Course not. So, uh, where are you trying to escape from?"

"Eh?" Jeremie cast him a confused look. He knew perfectly well what he was trying to escape from, but considering Chris didn't, the question was a bit out of context.

"What school are you at now?" He appeared immensely satisfied with his own joke. "You know, the one you're trying to escape by coming here?"

"Oh? Right. Uh…" He racked his brain for a good answer. "_Collège Mouscadet_. It's over east some way." He pointed in a direction he hoped was east to emphasize his point. He hadn't made the school up- it was the public junior high school near where his parents lived. Would live. Maybe already lived.

"Over east? How far over?"

"I don't know how many kilometers, but it's about a three-hour drive."

"Oh, I see now- it's not the school, it's La Ville Nowhere you're getting away from." He clapped him on the shoulder. "You still don't have me beat, though. I live up in the UK-" He pointed to himself- "and distance-wise, that's _really_ getting away."

"Woah, that is far," Jeremie said in a falsely-over-impressed voice. "I kind of thought you had a bit of the accent."

"Well, yeah, sort of…" His voice tensed a bit, and he rubbed his forehead. "I've been working on improving it."

"It's not a bad thing, it's just…there, you know? No need to worry about it." He smiled. It was clear that he was bored with this aspect of the conversation. Unconsciously, his eyes slid toward Aelita. A spontaneous thought struck him- if he was going to get her to talk, now was the opportunity. He turned and smiled at her, hoping that he didn't look goofy. "So, uh, Aelita, where do you live?"

Aelita, who had been busy drinking her milk, set her drink down. She didn't look up at either of them as she spoke. "Down the road, not too far from here. I'm a day student."

"Huh, really? That's…nice." His smile grew larger. His face was starting to hurt.

"Mmhm, yes, it is." She nodded. It was clear that this was all the talk that she was intending to do at the moment. So, Chris saw fit to do the talking for her.

"It is kinda nice, you know?" he said, leaning back in his seat. "I mean, an actual room, maybe some variety for breakfast…yanno? But, yeah, she lives nearby with her dad. He's a teacher here, so I guess it makes sense for her to-"

A loud bell rang across the school grounds, cutting him off. Lunch was over. Everyone was standing from their seats, eagerly lining up to dispose of their uneaten food, and then leaving with slightly less enthusiasm- their next destination was class, after all. Aelita was the first of the table to rise, tray in hand. "It's…time to go."

"Alrighty, then." The two boys followed suit, and together they disposed of their trays and exited the cafeteria. For a moment, Jeremie entertained the idea of bolting as soon as he hit the ground, but somehow, he had the feeling he wouldn't get too far. Besides, in the irrational back of his mind, he didn't want to leave just yet. Things- and people- were happening, and, most of all, something was nagging at him. Something that Chris had reminded him of during lunch. Something important.

"Uh, Chris…" He turned toward the other boy, who had been trying to engage Aelita in conversation again. "Sorry for interrupting whatever you were doing, but what class do we have next?"

"Huh? Oh, it's no big deal." He threw his hand up in resignation. "Next class? Science, I think. Then…well, I don't remember, but the point is, we're going to Science."

"Oh. Okay, thanks." A chill ran down his spine. If his memory wasn't failing him (which it rarely did), Science class in 1994 meant one thing in particular- the one thing in the past or present that he really wasn't ready for.

He shivered ever so slightly as he and the others approached the labs.

* * *

Aside from the missing floor, the Science building was exactly the same as Jeremie had remembered. The three of them had even entered the same classroom where he usually had class in the present day. Chris sat down at one table, near the front, while Aelita sat next to him at the one across from it. Jeremie took this to mean he should sit next to Chris on the other side, which he did without any objection from either of his new companions.

Slowly, the rest of the class filed in. Like the first English class with Medea, the Science teacher was late, or at least absent when they came in. The students were taking proper advantage of the teacherlessness- they were talking, laughing and throwing things at people. Jeremie glanced at the door just as a tall, dark-haired boy came in, sauntered down the aisle, and sat down in the only empty seat- the one next to Aelita. They glanced at each other momentarily, but did not interact beyond recognition.

A movement in the corner of Jeremie's vision caught his attention. He looked down at the seat beside him, and recoiled in surprise. Chris was glaring over at the boy, wearing an expression that could only be described as antagonistic- his eyes were narrowed to slits, and his omnipresent smile was gone, replaced by a dark scowl. The boy was only ignorant for a moment or so; when he finally looked up, casually as ever, and met Chris's gaze, he arched his eyebrow, rolled his eyes, and then looked back down. Chris gave a small, discreet nod, then looked back at the front of the room.

Aelita, who had been looking toward the front the whole time, had ignored the entire scene. Jeremie, who hadn't, stared over Chris in mild confusion. Whoever that was, he told himself, Chris must have really hated him.

His stomach gave a twist, and he stared, with many of the rest, up at the empty desk in the front of the room. He knew what was coming, but at the same time, he had no clear idea what to expect from it. Questions welled up in his mind, but he swallowed many of them before he could make any silly assumptions. To distract himself, he focused only on being invisible, unnoticed. He twitched. It wasn't working.

After a few moments, the light chatter was rudely interrupted when the door flew open with a loud bang. Almost simultaneously, every single child sat right at attention, staring straight ahead, not making a single sound. Jeremie hardly had time to conform before a man, presumably the teacher, marched through the door. He stopped at his desk, put his bag down on the surface, and then looked up, making eye contact with all of his students.

He was tall, large and imposing, even from a distance. He wore a white lab coat over a brown sweater and khakis, which appeared to be the uniform for most science teachers. He was very fuzzy, with a full head of grey hair, and a slightly darker beard and moustache to go with it. Separating these two features was a pair of round, thick, slate-grey glasses, which obscured his eyes entirely. Jeremie knew him instantly. That face was too easy to remember.

Franz Hopper.

Lyoko's creator. Aelita's father. The man he'd waited far too long to meet.

Without any sort of change in expression, Franz Hopper scanned his class, his head pivoting like a lawn sprinkler as he stared from face to face. The students appeared intimidated, confused, but said nothing. Jeremie tried to copy their facial expressions, holding back any sort of nervous grin. In the back of his mind, he wondered how Aelita reacted to this sort of thing, but decided it wouldn't be worth the risk to turn his head.

Just after his gaze passed over Jeremie, he stopped, and did a double take backward. His eyes, or rather, his blank grey slates, locked on him. His eyebrows narrowed. Sweat broke out on Jeremie's forehead- the one sign of stress he couldn't hide. This was exactly what he'd hoped wouldn't happen.

"Who is this?" His voice was slow and powerful.

Nobody spoke for a moment, least of all Jeremie. Finally, a chair scraped to his left, and he heard Chris's voice. "It's Jeremie, sir. He's a shadow student today-"

"Okay. Thank you." There was another scraping noise- Chris had sat back down. Slowly, carefully, Franz walked around his desk and down the center aisle, stopping where the young boy sat. His eyes never left him for a moment. "Jeremie."

The nervous grin slowly escaped and wormed its way across Jeremie's face. A thousand questions filled his mind, but he swallowed them, since most of them were about the supercomputer. "Y-yes?" he finally stammered.

Franz's eyebrows relaxed, changing his expression from anger to something like indifference. "Welcome to Kadic."

"Huh? Uh…t-thank you." He nodded rapidly.

Franz raised an eyebrow, but did not comment further. Finally, he looked away from him, and walked back toward the front of the room. "Well, then. As you all remember from yesterday…"

The students, who had been staring at this scene for the past few moments, turned back toward their teacher and took out their notebooks. Jeremie, having no notebook or reason to listen, dropped his head on his desk, breathing a sigh of relief. Chris was one of the few still staring at him; once he was sure that he wouldn't be noticed, he reached over and poked him in the back. "You alright?"

"Yeah. Sure." Jeremie lifted his head, readjusting his lopsided glasses. "That was…weird."

"He doesn't do that to everybody. He's probably in a bad mood or something, and you just got a blast of it." He spoke in a whisper that was barely audible. "That's Mr. Hopper, by the way. He's wicked smart and an alright teacher, but…he doesn't really get out much, if you know what I mean. Tiny bit warped in the head. Oh, I nearly forgot." His low whisper dropped even lower. "Y'know Aelita, right? Remember how I told you her dad was a teacher here?" He tilted his head in Franz's direction.

"Oh, so he's…" His eyes widened in feigned shock. Taking the opportunity, he looked over Chris's shoulder, catching the first glimpse of Aelita he'd got since her father had entered the room. She was looking at her paper, taking notes, much like everyone else save for two. Her facial expression captivated him, however- it appeared confused, perhaps a bit apprehensive. As he was watching, she took a quick, indiscreet glance up at her father, arched an eyebrow, and looked back down. His eyes relaxed. "Wow."

"Yep. Nothing alike, huh?" Chris's voice pulled Jeremie back to the world of the living. Suddenly self-aware, he blushed, and turned his head away.

"Uh, yeah. Agreed." He rested his head on the table again, and stared vaguely frontward.

If Franz Hopper was 'warped' or in any sort of bad mood, he didn't show it any further in the lesson, which was about the table of the elements. Unlike Medea, he was strictly on task- he stuck to his subject, showing very little hint of a character or personality anywhere in his lectures. It was rather mind-numbing, but somehow, Jeremie found himself hanging on to every word. Maybe it was Franz's harsh, shuddering voice that kept him awake. Or the memory of their short encounter earlier in the lesson that frightened him into attentiveness. Maybe a bit of both. Either way, that Science class, first few moments aside, was just that- a Science class.

The hour dragged by so slowly and with such tension that when the bell finally rang, the room cleared in an instant. Jeremie was one of the first to leap out of his seat, but was kept behind by Chris, who was waiting for Aelita to put her books away in her bag. Franz remained at his desk, calm in contrast to his departing students, not even bothering to give them a goodbye. Finally, the three of them were ready to leave, and headed towards the door.

As they walked, Jeremie was vaguely aware of Aelita turning her head to face her father, staring for a few seconds, and then turning away. Rather stupidly, he turned his own head as well. Upon first glance, Franz was still looking in Aelita's direction, his expression unreadable. However, as he noticed Jeremie, he locked eyes with him once more, his mouth a thin line. With a tiny squeak, he turned away again.

Chris had only seen Jeremie's side of the situation, and was very amused by it. "Oh, come on. Sure, Mr. Hopper's a little intimidating, but he's not _that _scary."

"Yeah, I know," Jeremie replied. "But that way he…it was like he really hated me." He glanced to the side for a moment, but then recovered. "But, maybe you're right. I guess I could just chalk it up to him being crazy."

Chris shrugged. Aelita, whom Jeremie didn't even realize was listening, tilted her head over Chris's shoulder, looking at Jeremie- not glaring, just looking. Jeremie flinched as he noticed her, realizing what he had just said.

"O-of course, not that crazy, I mean…uh…sorry. I didn't realize…" He felt his face heating up.

Aelita's face twitched, then formed a sort of small, apologetic-half smile. "It's alright. I get what you're trying to say." She turned back forward, and the smile gradually faded, replaced by the indifference that usually colored her face. Chris cast her a sort of worried look for a moment, but this was gone rather fast as well. Soon enough, his amiable chatter, Aelita's short responses and Jeremie's awkward silence colored the walk back to the main complex.

* * *

The rest of the afternoon was much like the morning- full of teachers and classes that Jeremie didn't recognize. It was a bit different, though, because Aelita was with them. She still seemed rather distant and reserved, but she was there in any case. She usually sat at another table, while he and Chris sat together- and through this, Jeremie noticed something rather curious. When a girl sat next to Aelita in sixth period, Chris didn't care. But when a boy sat next to her in seventh, he glared at him, just as he had done in Science. The boy didn't notice, but Jeremie did. It was confusing- and a bit unnerving.

But teenage social scuffles were the last thing on his mind that afternoon. For once that day, his surprise at Franz's actions had been genuine- why _had _he made that scene in Science? Why did he seem so angry at him? Even if he was in the wrong time period, he hadn't done anything to him. Perhaps it really was just him being crazy, he thought. After all, the man was building a giant supercomputer- it'd be right for him to be paranoid.

Slowly, very, very slowly, the day came to an end. As the last bell rang and Chris ushered him outside, Jeremie couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. The long, boring day was finally over, and now he could focus on his bigger problems. Or, at least, he thought he could- but Chris had other plans.

"Hey, want us to walk you to the gate?" Chris looked at him like he'd fallen asleep. "You gotta go now, right?"

"Huh?" Jeremie's train of thought snapped unhappily off its course. "Uh, no, that's alright, I can find-"

"Oh, c'mon. You're a newbie, I'm not just gonna leave you to get lost." He smiled. "Besides, we're going that way anyway. Aelita needs to get home, after all." Aelita, who remained silent, simply nodded.

"Uh…" It was no use. With someone as pigheaded as Chris, it would be impossible to refuse. "Okay. Thank you."

"Awesome!" The three of them broke away from the large crowd of boarders in the Quad area and followed the few day students down the path to the gate. They disappeared rather quickly, leaving Jeremie, Chris, and Aelita the only ones left standing. There was an awkward silence for a moment.

"Sooooo..." Chris was definitely afraid of quiet. "Jeremie. Didya like Kadic? How does it rank?" He turned toward Jeremie, who groaned in his mind. There went his chance to make an excuse to leave.

"It's..." He tried to find a satisfactory answer. "Pretty okay, I guess. Some weirdo teachers here and there...but it's high on my list."

"You got that right." He laughed. Aelita just kept looking to the side, seemingly determined to remain silent. However, after Chris's comment, her head turned slowly toward them, her eyes coming to rest on Jeremie. She sighed. Jeremie hoped that he hadn't gone red.

"Uh...Jeremie. I want to apologize for my father's behavior in class today." It was the longest, if one of the only sentences she had said to him all day. "I hope that did not negatively affect your opinion of Kadic..." Her voice trailed off, and her gaze wandered away. Jeremie was beginning to notice a habit.

"Huh? Oh, no. You don't have to feel sorry about that." He smiled what he hoped was a warm smile at her. Her expression didn't change.

"That's true." She looked up at the sky, and smiled to herself. "I hope he's alright now. He seems…" She lapsed into silence. Chris looked over at her, a hint of worry in his eyes. Jeremie could have taken the chance to run, but somehow, curiosity kept him on the spot.

"She doesn't seem to like talking much," he said, quietly, so Aelita couldn't hear, but loud enough to snap Chris out of la-la land. "Does she have something against me?"

"Eh? No, no, of course not." His smile returned instantly as he spoke. "She's just a little shy around new people. Even me, sometimes. I don't really think she had many friends before she came here…but, once you get past all that, she a pretty alright person. Awesome, actually." He smiled a bit larger than usual.

"I'll take your word for it." He smiled back. "She doesn't seem mean, in any case."

"Yeah, no way." He raised his voice. "So, like I was saying, I really recommend Kadic. Classes may suck, but I was glad to go." He glanced over at Aelita, who was still staring up at the sky. Jeremie couldn't see his expression, but he did notice when, after a second, he did a double take. "Oh, hey- Medea!"

"Medea?" Jeremie only had a second to be confused. Chris whirled away from him, and began waving a bit too enthusiastically at the trees behind him. Aelita turned as well, so he figured he'd better follow suit. Sure enough, as they had said, the raven-haired woman was standing right on the path, perhaps going to the green house she presumably lived in. She'd noticed Chris's shouts- she turned round, beamed at them, and waved back. Then, to Jeremie's surprise, she ran down toward them. Not walked. _Ran._

"Hey, Chris! Aelita! Um...other kid!" She skidded to a halt at their feet. "How're you all doing?"

"We've been alright since 9 AM, Medea," Chris replied, laughing. "You?"

"Well..." She stared at the sky, finger on her chin. "Okay, no flying elephants...I'd say my life is just fine." She laughed to herself. Jeremie couldn't help but chuckle a bit. "How about you, Aelita? I didn't see you in class this morning. You okay? All well?"

"Um…yes, of course, Medea!" If Jeremie hadn't been looking at Aelita as she spoke, he might not have believed it. Her voice was louder, happier, and more confident, and her expression and posture had changed to match. "I just didn't feel too well this morning, but I'm fine now. How's Elizabeth doing?"

"Oh, Sissi had a bit of an upset stomach last night, but you wouldn't know it today. She doesn't look sick at all. Maybe it's something going around…anyway, I was just going to pick her up from the front building. She's been there all day, so…yeah, nothing interesting happened in class today."

"Aw…" Her face fell a bit. "Well, at least I didn't miss a visit from her. Will she be coming to class anytime soon?"

"Maybe in a few days, after the test on Thursday."

"That's wonderful! But, if it's alright, can I come see her once you've got her back home this afternoon? If you have any papers to grade or anything, I could babysit her-"

They continued on in that vein for some time. While Jeremie didn't mind their talk much, Chris grew bored of it rather quickly. In a short time, his smile faded, and he rested his chin in his hand. "I don't get why they're so obsessed with babies," he mumbled under his breath. "It makes her happy, I know, and Elizabeth's cute and all, but _really_..."

_Cute? Sissi? _Jeremie didn't quite want to put those two words next to each other. In his mind, nothing was farther from _cute_ than the spoiled, snobby, overly-loud present-day Sissi he had come to know. He couldn't quite imagine her as a toddler, much less a cute one.

Very shortly, the females' trail of gossip wore thin. Around this time, Medea, for no particularly apparent reason, looked over at the boys. Her eyes lit up upon noticing them. "Oh yeah, that's right, there's other people here! Cute people, too. Don't know how we ignored them. Sorry bout that, Chris and, uh..." She looked over at Jeremie, hand on chin. "Sorry, I forgot your name."

"Jeremie."

"Oh yeah!" She laughed. "So, how do you like Kadic? Good? Bad? Are we normal enough for you?"

"I don't think any school can be called 'normal'." He smiled- Medea's mood was infectious. "Yeah. Kadic's okay. There are some very strict teachers, though..." He had half a mind to take this back, seeing as he was talking to a teacher. Then again, Medea didn't seem much like a teacher outside the classroom, and really, what did it matter to him?

Happily, she didn't seem to mind too much. "Yeah, there's a few here and there. But, y'know, the strict ones are actually the ones that really care about you. At least that's what they say...I dunno. People say things, and then never bother to prove them." Her gaze wandered towards the campus. "Hm…don't you think the front building looks a bit too...brown?"

"Brown?" This was the last question he'd expected.

"Yeah, it's too brown. I think it needs some red. Right there, to brighten it up." She pointed toward a random corner of the building, and smiled.

"Some red, hm?" A shadow loomed over them. Medea whirled around, and the children looked up. They had been so absorbed in the teacher's non-sequitur train of thought, neither she nor the children had noticed that anyone else had approached. It was the school principal, Jean-Pierre Delmas. Jeremie's eyes widened again.

Medea, being married to this man, was obviously very happy to see him. Her eyes lit up as she replied. "Sure, some red, to make it stand out. Yanno what I'm saying?"

"Not...really."

"Huh…okay, I'll start over then. Hi there, Jeannie, what are you doing over here?"

_Jeannie?_ Jeremie had to fight down a laugh. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Chris and Aelita doing the same thing. He composed himself sooner than they did, enough to risk a good look at him. Although in terms of recognition he looked the same as ever, he'd clearly had some years stripped off him. It was now easier to believe that someone as young as Medea was his wife. His hair was brown rather than grey, as were his moustache and beard, and he was maybe twenty or thirty pounds lighter. He wore the same suit as he always had in the present, if in a bit of a smaller size. Oddly, he was smiling. As long as Jeremie had known Mr. Delmas, he had rarely seen the man smile.

"Well, it's been twenty minutes since you said you'd come for Elizabeth, so I just figured you'd gotten distracted a little." He laughed a little, and glanced over at the children. "Looks like I was right."

"Yeah, looks like it." She skipped closer to him, leaned over, and kissed him on the cheek. "I was just talking to some students. It's their fault. Except not." She beamed.

"Heheh…well, I think you'd better go get her now," he replied, amused. "I left her in my office, and I'm not too sure I want to have it cleaned again."

"You left her _alone_? Geez, you suck as a father. Ah, well, off to survey the mess." Medea skipped up the path away from the gate, followed more slowly by her husband. As she left, she turned her head back, waving at the three left behind. "G'bye, guys, see you later! Hope you liked Kadic, Jeremie!"

"Wait, Jeremie?" Mr. Delmas stopped abruptly and turned around, looking at Jeremie. "Huh…I don't recognize you. Are you the shadow student?"

"Uh…" Jeremie was taken a bit aback. "Yes, yes I am."

"Ah…I see." His voice grew more businesslike, more easily associated with the older man Jeremie was familiar with. "I did get a notice about you, Jeremie, but you really should have remembered to come to the front office to introduce yourself, get your schedule, things of that sort. Surely they told you to do that when you got your information letter."

"Uh...yes, sir, sorry, sir." He nodded his head several times.

"Alright, then. Well, in any case, I, like my wife, hope you enjoyed Kadic." Unlike Medea, whose wish was enthused, his seemed rather automatic. With a parting wave, he continued walking, making steady pace behind the woman skipping ahead. The three were left alone once more. Aelita, having nothing else to say at that point, stared to the side again.

Once he was sure that Mr. Delmas was out of earshot, Jeremie shot a bewildered look at Chris. "_Jeannie...?_"

"Yep." He started shaking with laughter again. "She calls him that all the time, in front of teachers, students, parents… strangers... I can't tell if he hates it or loves it, but he's never told her to stop."

"That's…kind of creepy." There was a short silence- the first in a long time, which he took perfect advantage of. He picked up his bag and slung it over his shoulder, trying to make it perfectly obvious that he really needed to leave. "Uh, well...My parents said they'd be around the corner from here, so…I gotta go."

"Aww, really?" Chris looked genuinely disappointed. "That blows."

"Yeah, it's unfortunate. Sorry. Uh...thanks, guys. For everything." He smiled as convincingly as he could.

"Oh, no prob, Jer!" Without warning, he caught him in a headlock and gave him a noogie. "Hope you come here next year. Drop by even if you don't go! I'll be looking for you."

"Uh, I will. Thank you!" Somehow, lying through one's teeth wasn't that painful anymore. Because he felt it necessary, he took one final look back at their pink-haired companion. "Uh…bye, Aelita."

She didn't respond, but just gave him a smile and a small wave. He smiled back, waved one last time, then walked out through the gate into the outside world. He turned the corner, looked down the street, and breathed an immense sigh of relief. He was free. No more Kadic. No more Chris. No more past Aelita.

He ran down the sidewalk, trying to put as much distance between himself and the old school as possible. Now that all the foolishness was over, he could use the limited remainder of his day to focus on more pressing matters- such as, say, the fact that he was trapped twelve years too far back in the timestream. He sighed. Though he was in this desperate situation, he, though not exactly considering himself fortunate, had to admire some of his luck. Unlike most people faced with situations such as this, he knew what he was doing and where he was going. They would be trapped beyond any hope of escape, but he knew exactly what might help him get home- knew not only where it was, but exactly how to use it.

After a time, he came across a small, otherwise nondescript stretch of road which wound alongside the banks of the Seine River- a river all too familiar to him. In the middle of the river, connected to the mainland by a bridge, stood a painfully familiar sight- a small island, upon which lay the old, abandoned Renault factory. It looked just as abandoned as it did in his time, if with slightly less graffiti, but, as he knew, its insides held secrets greater than its dilapidated walls would ever dare to hint. Sometime in the past, used to manufacture cars. Sometime in the future, the house of Lyoko and XANA. Right now…hopefully closer in function to the latter.

Jeremie stared at it a moment. A smile wormed itself across his features.

"Home at last, Belpois. Home at last." Without a second thought, he ran towards the bridge, holding onto the hope that the other side could help him.

* * *

Jeannie. Pronounced like 'Johnny'. I am evil to Jean-Pierre, aren't I?

Like that one review said, cliffhangers are evil. But I have to do them. See y'alls next time.

-Carth


	5. Fire and Brimstone

**THIS**

**IS**

**CHAPTER EDIT!**

**Enjoy. I'm really happy that this didn't take as long as Chapter 4 did. I'm not exactly giddy for the next few, though...**

HI FFNET HUMANS!

Uh, yep, here's the next chapter. It's kinda short, but pretty important. We're a quarter way through the story already. Wowza. Again, thankies for all the reviews!

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Code Lyoko. All I did was make Franz Hopper's coffee.

* * *

**Chapter 5  
**Fire and Brimstone

The factory looked much the same as it had the hundreds of other times that Jeremie had entered it in the present. It was still in ruins on the inside, discarded equipment still littered its floor below, and, thankfully, ropes were still hanging down from the edge of the bridge. Once he had reached this edge, he swung down one to reach the floor, the action almost automatic. When he had landed, he looked around, oddly comforted by the familiar surroundings. Finally, he thought, one place that was somewhat the same.

Of course, this was just the surface of the factory. He wasn't sure exactly what lay below- whether it was a fully-fledged, functional supercomputer, or a shell of the aforementioned. It all depended, really, on what part of the day's RTTP cycle he had been sent to. Unfortunately, he didn't know this important little fact. He shivered. He hoped, for his own sake, that the terminal was at the very least recognizable.

He ran for the elevator, punched in the key code, which was thankfully the same, and stepped in. The elevator worked, of course, and took him down as it always would. He shivered, adjusting to the unnatural cold. He remembered the first time he had used this elevator, that first night, when his greatest fear had been that the old cables would snap. He had to smile at the memory. Silly, really.

After a moment, the elevator stopped, and the complex locking mechanisms parted. The resulting sight was hauntingly familiar- it was the interface room, which looked exactly the same as it had- has?- in the present. Everything was there- the holomap, the dull green chrome walls, the incredible swinging chair, and then the interface itself. It was like he'd suddenly stepped back into his own time, and he was just preparing for another XANA attack. Strangely enough, it made him feel a bit more at ease, though neither this nor a XANA attack was a comforting thought.

He walked up to the interface, and brushed his finger across the arm of the chair. Just the same as he remembered, except there were no layers of dust anywhere. Everything looked a lot newer. But, he had no time to dwell on this. As he had pondered several times over, he was in a desperate situation, and the supercomputer was his one hope of ever getting out of it. In one swift motion, he leapt into the chair, swung it around to face the interface, and raised his hand, preparing to turn the computer on.

Before he could do this, however, he heard a sound behind him that he was far too used to- the sound of an elevator, moving up and down. Someone was coming, and unfortunately, he had a good idea of who it was.

An impulse hit him. With a small, frightened squeak, he jumped out of his seat, ran away from the interface, and, in a last ditch attempt to save his skin, scampered down the ladder into the opening in the floor, the one that led to the scanner room in case the elevator didn't work. It was a fairly small passage, but Jeremie was a fairly small kid. By clinging to the ladder, and leaving the shaft open slightly, he could hide himself and twist his neck up to get a good view of the interface. This way, he could see what was going on, and hopefully enough, not be noticed.

Though he couldn't see the elevator from his position, he heard it opening again, followed by the sound of footsteps. Soon, a man came into view- to no surprise, it was none other than Franz Hopper. As per usual, his expression was unreadable, a fact aggravated by the unfavorable angle and the paperweights that were ever-present on his face. As he walked across Jeremie's line of vision, he noticed that he was holding something in each of his hands. The left hand held a cup of coffee, while the right hand held, oddly enough, a glass jar, which contained what looked like a rather large black rat. He couldn't see the rat well, but he could hear soft, muffled squeaks coming from the jar. Was it trying to break free? He couldn't accurately tell.

Franz walked over to his interface chair, sat down, and swung around to face the terminal. He put the jar on the ground, and, rather more carefully, placed his coffee on his armrest. He cracked his knuckles, picked up his mug, took a swig, then typed something in. The machine booted up with a delightful metallic noise. He shuddered, adjusted a small camera on top of the interface, and began typing, talking into the camera as he did so.

"June 6, 1994. Day..." He sighed. "2,540. As I mentioned yesterday, I have just completed the turnaround of Lyoko. It is now sufficiently inhabitable and can support two people, though I think I can extend the Mountain Sector by a plateau or two. But, from a practical view, the only thing it currently lacks is the stability of the scanners. Today, I will again test them to see if material beings can survive the trip into Lyoko intact. I should be perfecting it soon- any longer, and I might run out of rats." He laughed- an exhausted, hollow laugh. The rat's squeaks grew more frantic. "Once I am done with that, I should be able to begin my next program, one that will wall off Lyoko from the Digital Sea. Not only do I not need the network anymore, but there also stands the fact that it is unsafe for living matter. If something happens…if I or Aelita were to fall in…" He trailed off, remained silent for a few seconds, then, almost robotically, grabbed his coffee again.

Jeremie's eyes widened in intense interest. His leg began to itch, but he didn't dare to move, let alone leave the shaft at all. Any movement, any noise might alert Franz to his presence- and he had no idea how he might handle an eavesdropper, especially him. So, he was stuck. But, he reluctantly admitted to himself, he wasn't overly desperate to leave. This was one of Franz's research sessions, after all- one thing he never thought he'd ever see beyond the diaries.

When the old man was done drinking, he placed the mug down, and took a deep breath. "Well, on to business. The scanners can certainly send matter into Lyoko and back, and thanks to my calculations over the past few, erm, months, live matter can live through the first transfer." He paused after this sentence, rather abruptly. "Hm...did I remember to flush the toilet at home? Ah, it doesn't matter. In just a moment, I will test to see if, with these new modifications, live matter can survive the trip back."

Jeremie's heart skipped- he knew what was coming next, and it wasn't a happy thought. Franz stood from the chair, reached down to the floor, and picked up the jar with the rat in it. For a split second, he could see the furry creature- it was scampering up the walls of the jar, as if holding on to the hope that the airholes would give it freedom. Completely ignoring this, Franz walked across the room to the elevator, until he was out of Jeremie's sight. There was an elevator noise…and then no noise at all.

A bead of sweat fell down his face. The shaft, he realized, was awfully stuffy, and was growing more so by the second. It had been made for climbing down, not staying in. Taking care not to bump the edges of the shaft, he wiped his brow. Subconsciously, he wondered about the fate of the rat. Would it live, or...

There was another elevator noise. A second later, Franz walked back into Jeremie's line of vision, and sat back in the interface chair. He drank some more coffee, then began typing again. "Well, the test subject is in place…here goes nothing, once again. Transfer, L- 422. Scanner, L-422. Virtualization." He pressed a final key.

There was a short, tense silence. It was finally broken by a twitch, some typing, and then a sigh. "Well...at least it's alive this time."

Jeremie's heart skipped again. Franz, oblivious, talked on. "Although he is alive and in a recognizable form, Test Subject L-422 is missing several limbs, and possibly some internal organs as well. Not a good thing, not good at all." He tapped several more keys. "But, that's not what I'm testing at the moment. Materialization, L-422."

He tapped a key, and then waited, leaning closer to the screen to get a better look. "From my camera view...ah, it's there in the scanner...oh, dear." He held his hand up to his mouth. Jeremie didn't exactly want him to continue.

"It appears I need to bring out the dustpan. That, and adjust the organic toleration levels." His tone was shockingly calm, considering its context. "I know I don't want anything like that happening to myself...or…or Aelita..." His voice trailed off. He glanced over at his mug, as if he was going to take another drink, but did not. He resumed typing, but, his commentary didn't quite match what he was doing.

"Aelita…I…I love her dearly, I know I do. Ever since…" He didn't finish his thought. "I…I don't know. I don't know if I'm doing the right thing…for her. She has her school…her little friends…if I took her away from that…" He was silent again. The air was thick for several tense moments.

"Ah...no." Franz slumped over onto the keyboard with a heavy, melancholy sigh. "No, no…I have to. I have to do this. It's the only way to save her. I have to save her from them…no matter what it means for her. I have to."

He lay there for a moment, then, slowly, straightened back up. The dramatic irony of the situation was murderous for Jeremie- deep in his irrational subconscious, he wanted to do something, but he didn't dare move. He wiped some sweat from his brow again, just as Franz resumed.

"I fear I have to work faster," he said, his tone growing slightly more frantic. "It's nearly time. I can feel it. Changes are here…bad changes, changes that shouldn't be happening." He took a quick drink from his mug. "Hm...this is good coffee. But, I can't get distracted...I don't know how its happened, but it has. Someone has…it's impossible…but it's happening, I've seen it with my own eyes. He's here…but he shouldn't be." He shuddered. "Though…I don't know how concerned I should get. He's only a little boy, after all…"

Jeremie stifled a gasp. _Well, duh! _His behavior in Science was all too clear now. Jeremie had come into the timestream right in the middle of Franz's loop- something he had no business doing, and Franz knew it. All the better reason, he thought, to get out as soon as he could. If only he hadn't gotten delayed at the school…

"…No, no no. That's exactly what they want me to think. I can't let my guard down, not for a child, not for anyone. I have to keep vigilant. I have to keep working." He sighed, for what was maybe the tenth time. As he did so, Jeremie realized just how tired, how strained he appeared and sounded. It was almost as though he hadn't slept in weeks- which, considering the circumstances, could actually be a valid explanation. He seemed to have worked so hard for so long...so far beyond a crazy man's impulsivity.

For a long time, Franz typed placidly and silently, stopping occasionally for sips of coffee. Jeremie was really beginning to loathe the shaft. It was hot, sticky, and uncomfortable, and he really, desperately needed some air. He wished that Franz would leave already, so that he could get to work, get home, and maybe even not be this man's problem anymore…

His thoughts were cut off by a clatter. Franz had jumped up suddenly, knocking his coffee mug off his armrest. It shattered to pieces on the floor, startling the old man even further. "Shi-" He looked around wildly, then relaxed, as though he had never startled. He glanced down at the smashed mug. "Ah...ha ha. Ha, ha ha."

He sat back down, in his seat, calmer, but a bit more alert. "I suppose I really will be needing that dustpan. But, all kidding aside…it's happening again. Maybe I'm just going crazy, maybe…maybe I'm just insane. But I know. Somehow, I just know someone is watching me. Someone's always watching me…no, not the child…the child can't watch me the way they can. They…" He shook his head, and began typing again.

"For the last half hour or so, I've been working on XANA's repairs. Once again, I've made no progress whatsoever. Despite all my efforts to keep it confined to Sector 5, it still refuses to back off from its original coding. It's becoming increasingly difficult to try to separate it from Lyoko, even though it no longer has any use there." He sighed. "Honestly, I don't know what I'm going to do with that program. It's been working wonderfully for its intended purpose, so I don't want to delete it just yet…but its glitches and false steps are near endless, and they happen in the most random of ways. It's almost as though…" He shook his head. "No, I'm not that much of a genius. XANA with a mind of its own...how ridiculous."

He laughed. Jeremie winced. Sweat covered his forehead. He wanted out, right now. _C'mon, _he willed, _be done, please…_

As if in answer to his silent plea, Franz got up and stretched, various bones popping and cracking. "Well…it appears to be very late. I've gotten a lot done tonight...the scanners should be fully operational by tomorrow. Should be, anyway. Goodnight…and end entry." He got back into his chair, and pressed a button, presumably closing his recording equipment. He spun around in his chair, and sat motionless for a moment, breath slow and labored.

Jeremie was sure he had sweated through his turtleneck. It was that hot.

A moment later, Franz's head sprung up from its sagged position, and he spun back to the interface, typing a key sequence into a window. Despite the unfavorable position, Jeremie recognized it immediately- he had done it himself, more times than he could remember. But he didn't have to recognize it to know what it was. And he liked it.

"Return to the past…now."

A column of white light burst out of the holomap area. It hung there for a moment, motionless, and then expanded, swallowing the factory, Jeremie, and the entire outer world.

* * *

L-422. Inside joke.

Hope this keeps you happy. Next, we repeat the day- and see how Jer handles it. I can tell you this- not very well. He wanted another raise. It got really hard to pay him after a while.

- Carth


	6. Day Two: Role Reversal

Sorry about the delay- I let writer's block get the best of me. Hopefully, that won't last.

I'm running out of ways to say thank you for the reviews- and it's only chapter six. (shakes head) This chapter's purpose is to kill time and get you anxious for the ending. I personally don't like it all that much. But it does have some interesting bits, and after this is where things get juicy. Trust me.

Either way, here's something to feast your eyes on.

**Disclaimer:** If I owned Code: Lyoko...you would be watching this episode instead of reading this fanfic. YAY!!

* * *

**Chapter 6  
**Day Two: Role Reversal

_Deja vu._

When Jeremie's brain snapped into gear, that was the first thing he thought. He was sitting in a small patch of grass, beside a road and a wall. He knew he'd been here before, just when-

Then he remembered. The factory. The RTTP. Jeremie slapped his forehead. Why wasn't his brain working?

He'd read over Franz Hopper's diary several times, if skipping a few entries here and there. Each entry was dated on the same day- June 6, 1994- but the count of how many days he had worked kept climbing regardless. The only way that could've happened is if Franz had reversed time to the beginning of the day over and over- which was exactly what he'd done.

Jeremie stood up slowly. He wondered how anyone could stand repeating the day over that many times. Looking around, he spotted the same newspaper he had found the day- revision?- before. He picked it up- yep, he was right, June 6. Dammit. He threw it down again, and looked up at the wall.

"Guess I've got nothing better to do," he mused out loud. He'd attend Kadic as a shadow again. It was something to do, and he wouldn't be picked up off the street by truant officers. (Ulrich had told him about them. They sounded really scary.) He started down the grass towards the gate- it was actually open, contrary to what the big man from the last revision had said.

A bit slower than he had before, he walked over to the same tree where he had hacked himself in before. He sat down, and took out his laptop. It was easier to hack into the system now, mainly because he knew where he was going. He remembered his mental note to save his hack onto a CD, and did so. Now, he'd be able to do it even faster next time. Next time. _Crap._

He saw the crowds gathering as they had done yesterday. Exact same spots, even. Jeremie wondered if he should run into Chris again. Hey, once you find friends, you stick with them. He stood up. Scanning the crowd, he didn't find Chris, but he did find another familiar face.

Aelita was standing very close by, her back to him. Her expression was blank. It seemed like she was just standing and waiting for the world to happen. He stood up, transfixed. He should go to Chris again, but...he did some quick math in his head. _Aelita minus Chris equals WIN._

He sped off towards Aelita. He didn't mean to run into her on purpose, but with the help of blind love and a cross breeze, he did, knocking her over in the process, and landing on her. Squeaking, he moved off her immediately. She stood up quicker than he did. Contrary to Chris's warm understanding, she looked absolutely furious.

"Hey! Watch where you're going, willya? Geez..." She intended to turn around, walk away, and forget about it, but Jeremie wasn't done. He tried to stand up, but fell over.

"W-wait! I'm sorry...I'm shadowing here...I just need to know where first period English is...I'm sorry..." He attempted the most pitiful face he could. (When you haven't hit puberty, you have a repotire of pitiful faces.) Aelita looked back at him, groaned, and pointed toward the same building he had seen the other day, without another word.

"Okay, thank you...I'm sorry..."

"Stop apologizing, it's kind of pathetic." Jeremie didn't know how to respond to that. Apologize? He was still wondering when he heard a comfortingly familiar voice. "Hey, Aelita! What's up?"

Chris came running over, from the same spot Jeremie had found him in yesterday. He stopped by Aelita, and looked down at Jeremie. "This guy bothering you? I could kick his-"

"Nah, he's just some shadow. Needed to know where class was. Ignore him." Jeremie groaned miserably. Chris took a quick look at him.

"Hello." He turned back to Aelita immediately. "So, uh..." He scratched his head. A bead of sweat formed on his temple. "Nice weather, isn't it?"

"Yes. Very nice." She stared at the sky for a second. "But it's going to get cloudier later. What are you still doing here?" Her eyes locked on his.

"Uh...I don't know...so-I mean-"

"Hey, Aelita, don't be so mean. He's just a harmless kid." His mouth said that, but his eyes were looking him up and down. He wondered if he'd been doing that in the last revision as well.

"Well..." The bell rang. Jeremie stood up frantically and scampered to the English class. Thank god for school bells, however nasally and annoying.

* * *

The English class seemed, at first, to be much the same as it had been on the last revision. The kids sat at the exact same tables as they had, and the chatter sounded much the same. Jeremie sat alone at the back of the class, trying to attract as little notice as he could. He did, however, wave at Aelita as she came in, flanked by Chris. She didn't notice, or at the very least pretended not to. 

Just minutes after the final bell rang, a woman stepped in. It was clear who she was- Medea Delmas, that woman from the last revision. Her entry was exactly the same as it had been yesterday- down to the people shouting her name at the exact intrevals. It was kind of creepy.

The sameness only ended when Medea stopped her introductions, scanned the class for empty seats, and noticed the blond boy with glasses that really shouldn't have been there. Her eyes turned to him. Jeremie was reminded of Franz Hopper, though her gaze wasn't nearly as intense or antagonistic.

"Hm...who's that kid in the back?" Her eyes narrowed.

"Uh...Jeremie Belpois, ma'am." Jeremie stood up, hoping he wasn't making a fool of himself. "I'm a shadow, ma'am."

"None of this 'ma'am' business, it stuffs up the room. Well, Jeremie, welcome to Kadic! I never got any notice about you, but I'm sure it's in the system somewhere..." She giggled. The rest of the class laughed with her. "Ah, sorry. School computer systems. Big joke." Jeremie was sure he'd heard that before.

"In any case, I'm Medea Delmas, and I'm the English teacher. Call me Medea, everyone does for some reason. Yep." She nodded. The class stared at her. She suddenly became very interested in the chalkboard.

Nobody talked to Jeremie. It was as though Chris's presence in the previous revision invited them in, but now, himself alone pushed them away. He set his head in his hands, staring at the board, thinking of back-end coding fluxes to keep himself lightly amused. (The author would like to note that she has no idea what she just wrote.) Chris and Aelita sat in front of them, taking notes on whatever was going on. Jeremie wondered where she had been on the past revision.

About three-fourths way through the class, the air in the classroom seemed to get slightly less relaxing as Medea began explaining the exceptions to plurals. (Pretty hard subject matter.) Jeremie's mind began to wander. Then, suddenly, as thoughts are apt to do, an important one came to him. He'd forgotten something.

"Ma-Medea? Can I be excused? I forgot something." He spoke before his hand was in the air.

"Sure, uh-whatever your name is. Just come back." She laughed a little. Jeremie stared at her a heartbeat, and then ran off.

On the past revision, Jean-Pierre had told him that he should have come to the front office and introduced himself. Well, he thought, wouldn't it make more sense to do that this time around? Maybe, maybe not. After all, things had gone perfectly well before. And even if they didn't now, the RTTP at the end would save him. Hopefully.

He ran into the administrative building, passing lots of hallways, and coming to one he knew as the way to the principal's office. He ran into the secretarial area, where, of course, the secretary sat. That's what secretaries do. He sat in a chair, and looked up at the woman sitting at the rather dated-looking computer. It wasn't Nicole Weber, as it was in the present- she would have been too young at this point. Instead, it couldn't have been anyone else but Suzanne Hertz, the current science teacher. The puff of grey hair- still grey- and the round glasses could belong to no other.

Jeremie stared bewildered at her- it wasn't that odd, actually, Ms. Hertz seemed the deskwork type- then spoke. "Uhm, uh...I'm supposed to see the principal, should I..."

"The principal? Oh, he just left to get some coffee. He'll be back in about thirty seconds." She didn't even look at him.

"Okay, thank you. May I go in?"

"Sure, he won't mind, I think I hear him coming now." Still not looking at him. Looking at her computer screen as he walked into the office, Jeremie could have sworn he'd seen her playing some sort of game.

The office was almost exactly the same as it was in the present day. Same desk. Same chair. Same large area for interrogating the guilty. The items on the desk varied slightly- the computer looked older, for one thing, and there were a few more picture frames. Mr. Delmas's chair's back was turned to him at the moment.

He stood and looked at the desk, having nothing else to do, when the chair suddenly swivelled around. There appeared to be nothing in it at first- then he looked down. Seated low in it, almost invisible, was a very young girl, perhaps two years old. Her short black hair was worn up in pigtails, and she wore a denim jumper over a bright green t-shirt. Her feet were probably dangling in midair. She was the second most insanely cute little girl Jeremie had ever seen.

The second she saw him, her face hardened into a pout. Comically, she stood up on the chair, pointed right at him, and said, in the most adorable toddler's lisp, "YOU BEEN BAAAAAAAD!"

He had to fight down laughs as she went on. "Bad boy! Bad bad bad! Daddy does bad things to bad boys! Bad bad-"

"Elizabeth, calm down, it's okay." Jeremie didn't have to look to know that Jean-Pierre had just stepped in. "He's done nothing wrong, in fact I don't even know why he's here." He walked up to the desk, looking quizzically at Jeremie. The girl- whom he now recognized as a much younger Sissi- slumped in the chair, looking defeated at the prospect of no guilty masses to interrogate. "I'm sorry about my daughter. Kind of overzealous. So who are you?"

"I'm a shadow...Jeremie Belpois. I was told to come here and introduce myself."

"Hm...I heard nothing about you." He slid past Sissi and typed something in his computer. "Ah- there you are. This should have alerted me much earlier." He sighed. "But, that's technology for you. "So, it says here you go to Mouscadet Junior High...you live up north..."

"Yes, sir."

"And you have been placed in homeroom 8-B. I really should have been told about this. Well, thank you...I imagine you want to get back to class." A bell sounded across the complex. "I imagine you _really_ want to get back to class."

"Yes, it was nice to meet you and all. You have a very cute daughter." He wondered how long he could keep up this politeness.

"I've heard that too many times. Good luck." Jeremie ran out. That took less time than he'd thought. Now, he just had to get to second period- what was it again-

SQUELCH.

His way was hindered suddenly by a mass of flesh, which he bounced off of- ew- and fell to the ground. Looking up, he saw the large man from the last revision, the one who had thrown him into Kadic. Unlike then, however, he recognized him instantly.

It was Jim. Jeremie had no clue how he had not recognized him before. He looked _exactly_ the same- twelve years had made little to no difference. He was as large as ever, still wearing the same old track suit, the same old headband, and hopefully not the same old bandaid. The look of having caught a misbehaving child was also the same- one of triumph.

"Hey! Uh...whatsyername! You know you're not supposed to be in that building!" He was still as imposing as ever. "In fact, you should be in class! Skipping out, huh? Well, if you want to be in that building so much, I could cart you right back in to have a chat with the principal about where you've been!"

_How ironic._ "No, no, you see, I was-"

"No buts about it! I don't remember who you are, but you've been here long enough to know who's boss and who's not!" So, this Jim thought he was a student he had forgotten the name of. How odd.

"But- let me explain-" Out of the corner of his eye, Jeremie saw two very familiar faces walk by- Aelita, walking slowly, and Chris, skipping behind her. Looking round, he saw Jim, and ran towards him. Aelita paused for a moment, and then walked slowly in his direction. As if anything else could go wrong.

"'Ey, Uncle Jimbo, why are you beating on the shadows?" Chris skidded to a halt in front of Jim. "Or did you give him a chance to explain?"

"Explain wha-?" Jim looked thoroughly confused for a moment. "Oh, yeah, you're a-"

"A shadow...I was supposed to be in there...to introduce myself..."

Jim thought for a moment. A long, long moment. "Well, I guess if you're supposed to, I can't punish it...and that explains why I didn't know you..." He paused. "But that does NOT mean that while you are on the premises, you are exempt from any other school rules! Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes, sir."

"Well, then that's good. See you later, Chris!" His tone of voice lightened considerably on the last sentence. He step-walked away from the children, leaving them alone. Aelita fingered a loose thread in her jacket, having successfully ignored the whole ordeal.

"Uncle Jimbo?" Jeremie stared at Chris, thoroughly confused.

"Yeah, he's my uncle. Aelita over here has a relative in the school too. Weird, huh?" He seemed to be confused about the fact that he was shooting his mouth off.

"Yes, very odd. Chris, we're going to be late for class." Aelita placed a hand on his shoulder, in an attempt to get him to move. It really did nothing except make him blush purple. "Do we have any other occasions where we're going to have to save you?" Aelita looked at him, her eyes blank. Jeremie was taken back by the cold remark.

"Uh, no, no...but thank you." He tried to look as friendly as possible.

"Sure." She dragged Chris away. Chris waved a bit before he was pulled around a corner.

Jeremie watched as they departed. Chris...Uncle Jimbo...it all sat jumbled in Jeremie's head for a while. Then some scattered thoughts surfaced...oh yeah, that time when Aelita went and auditioned for that music thing. There was that guy, Chris, who was in the Subsonics, who came to Kadic to look for new talent and visit his uncle. Wasn't it...oh, crap.

He wondered why he hadn't noticed it before. Maybe because Chris had bleached his hair white in the present. Or maybe it was the lack of famousness...

Then he realized he had class to get to. So much for thought processes.

* * *

The rest of the morning was as uneventful as the last. Perhaps it was even moreso, since it was nearly exactly the same- the teachers, the lessons, even the conversations the children had in between. But, like the good little model student he was, Jeremie listened. Or at least pretended to. The only thing different about the morning was the fact that Chris was not talking to him. He was attached to Aelita's side, finding every chance he could to talk to her. Not that Jeremie was stalking them or anything- or at least, that's what he tried to convince himself. 

Lunch was slightly less eventful. This time, however, Jeremie found himself with no place to sit- all tables were occupied. So, he had no choice but to sit on the opposite end of- who else's- Chris and Aelita's table. He tried his best to pretend to ignore them. Still, jealousy flowed through him anxiously. He wanted Chris away from Aelita, different or not. He stared over at them every once in a while. Chris had just waved at him once, then ignored him, but Aelita kept throwing curious looks at him. It kinda freaked him out. That, and the fact that everyone else in the lunchroom stared at him as well. New faces weren't that common this time of year.

Time seemed to be passing more slowly than ever when Jeremie entered the Science classroom on instinct. Chris and Aelita had gotten there before him, and had taken seats near the middle of the room. He looked around. The seat next to Aelita at the next table over was empty. An idea came to him. He walked over to the seat, slowly, deliberately, and sat down. Aelita gave no notice, but Chris did. Boy, did he. His daggers-stare just made Jeremie more curious, though. _So I sat near her. Big whoop._

Things were too familiar at this point. When all the kids were seated, and the casual chatter had begun, Jeremie expected Franz Hopper to come bursting in as he had before...but, no. He was late. There was only a minute to be bewildered, though, when he walked in- not hurriedly, as before, but slowly, calmly. He approached the desk, and looked out over the class. A vein twitched in his temple.

His eyes had only scanned for a second when he spotted Jeremie. From eyebrow movements, one could tell that his eyes had gone wide. He hadn't been expecting this. "Hm..."

Jeremie buried his head in the desk. He could hear a chair scraping. "That's Jeremie Belpois, Mr. Hopper, he-"

"I know." Franz's voice cut the room like a knife. More chair scraping- and then footsteps coming closer. Then, the voice again. "Jeremie."

His head snapped up, sweat beading on his forehead. He wished he could hide it- or hide himself again. Franz Hopper kind of gave you that feeling when he stared at you.

"How...interesting."

Silence. Aelita's head was on the table again, shaking. Chris looked at her, concern in his brown eyes.

Finally, Franz sighed, walking away. As he did, one could've sworn a whisper had escaped from him. "Still interesting..."

Jeremie sat there, wide-eyed, just as he had spent the last lesson doing. Unlike the other teachers, who had the exact same lesson plans, Franz's was drastically different. For one thing, he glared at Jeremie during class, once or twice. Two, it wasn't about the table of elements.

He wrote something hurriedly on the chalkboard, and then turned around, with speed and precision that shook the whole class awake.

"Though they are a wholly new piece of technology, only debuting in a full-fledged form sometime in the 80s, computers have already become an important aspect of our lives. Am I right?"

There were some scattered nods. One boy raised his hand.

"Yes, Connor?"

"Aren't we studying the elements?"

Franz looked slightly bewildered for a second, but snapped out of it. "I have decided it more important to your own futures to teach this today. Now-" Connor raised his hand again. "Yes, Connor?"

"Is it going to be on the test?"

"No."

"Then why are we learning it?" The Connor boy (whom Jeremie recognized as the boy who had sat next to Aelita during the last revision) had a look of challenge in his eyes. "Isn't learning stuff in school supposed to just be for the test? I mean, I have NO clue where I'm going to fit the table of elements in my life." Some other kids nodded in agreement. Others looked at him with wide eyes, impressed at his daring.

Something like fury crossed Franz's face, but he kept calm, with a lot of effort. "Ah...that's what I don't like about the educational system. You come to learn, but they're really just teaching you how to pass tests. That always seemed very odd to me..." His voice trailed. He obviously was not comfortable sharing what he had just shared.

"In any case- as I was saying, there are many things these machines can do for us, such as word processing, spreadsheets, and games, which I'm sure you will all understand more than anything else I've said." He gave a short, weak laugh. Nobody else did. "But, I predict that soon enough, they may increase in importance...even become central to our very existence."

He paused for dramatic effect. "A new process is in the works, a plan to create a vast information network linking most computers together as one. The World Wide Web. Internet. Online. I assume most of you have heard of it."

"The Internet? Isn't that what nerds do?" Everyone burst out laughing. Connor seemed to be the class heckler.

"It is true that the World Wide Web has not attracted the attention of many people," he continued over the clamor, "But its growth potential is amazing. We may be sending you into a world where its presence is taken for granted. Does anyone else think so?" It was a clear challenge. Out of the corner of his eye, Jeremie saw Aelita raise her hand.

"Yes, Aelita?"

"Dad-" She rethought her statement. "Mr. Hopper, isn't the Internet a bit too costly and slow to be used by everyone in the world? You told me that yourself. The only way to get on is by a dial-up connection...and they're frustrating." Jeremie couldn't help but agree with her silently. The supercomputer had run on dial-up when he discovered it, and it took him a month to reconfigure it to broadband. Franz looked visibly unnerved. "Ah..."

"But that might change!" Before he could stop himself, he was standing, and that had come out of his mouth. Everyone turned to stare at him. Franz shot him another death glare.

"Yes. Go on?"

"Ahm, well..." Jeremie tried to make a point without giving himself away- he himself coming from the future Franz had described. "Progress is happening every day, right? Maybe they might find new ways of accessing the Internet, faster ones without dial-up! Maybe it might be a tool like he said. Progress is organic, after all, you never know which way it's going to go. Am I right?" His voice cracked.

More staring.

Franz cleared his throat. "That could happen...but at this point it's impossible to know. Nice speech, though."

There was laughter- lots from the back where Connor sat. Jeremie flushed red and sat down. Stupid, stupid, stupid. He peeked over at Aelita- she was smiling. Chris was covering his mouth and giggling.

The rest of the class seemed to pass with a deaf ear. The next thing Jeremie heard was the bell, cutting through the quiet of a Monday afternoon. Franz dismissed them all with a wave of his hand, reminding them that they were back to the elements the next day. Like Jeremie would ever get there. Shuffling out of the classroom, he looked back at Franz. He wasn't looking at him; rather, he was preparing for his next class. He noticed, suddenly, how haggard and tired Franz appeared- even moreso than his voice let on. If he could see his eyes, they must have looked absolutely miserable.

The afternoon was yet still more uneventful. School was starting to get even more boring than usual. By the time the final bell rolled around, it could have been three weeks on non-school timing. The afterschool rush to the dorms and gate was the same as yesterday, except that now, Jeremie walked alone.

But somehow, again, he ended up next to Chris and Aelita again. He wondered if fate actually existed. Nah, it was a psychological impossibility. Still, it was odd. Chris seemed very nervous, absentmindedly wringing his hands as he conversed with Aelita about the weather. She stared oddly at him, commenting now and then.

He wondered why they were walking that way, and then remembered- of course. Aelita was a day student, he had been told on the last revision. She was going home- to the Hermitage. He tried not to look at them.

Chris, desperate to find another topic of conversation, snapped over to Jeremie. "Uh...hey!" They stopped and stared at each other.

More uncomfortable silence.

"Uh...hey." Jeremie was uninterested. "'Bye." He gave a casual wave.

"Okay, bye!" Chris's wave was wide and enthusiastic. Aelita cast a sideways glance at him, then gave a lifeless wave. When that was done with, Jeremie broke into a run- out the gate, around the corner- and once again found himself with absolutely nothing to do. Stuck. Alone. And bored as hell.

Not only could he not go back, not go home, and not go to the present, he couldn't go to the factory. Not only was Franz there every afternoon, he was never, ever getting into that shaft again. He took off down the street. Maybe he could take to the streets...just for one revision. Just one...he could survive, even if someone like Odd or Ulrich was better suited to it than he was. No...he couldn't think about Odd and Ulrich right now. If he did, he'd probably give up. Or Yumi. Or Aeli...

He slumped by a building just outside Kadic grounds. _I guess I can stay here until they kick me off for loitering,_ he thought, laughing silently. Having nothing else to do, he fished his laptop out of his backpack, and began some work. As long as he had spare hours, he could use them. Now, that went there, and that went there, and oh, backspace, forgot to end that tag...

"...think he's been acting pretty strangely, don't you think, Daddy?"

"Well, I don't know much about this 'Chris', but I know that boys do act that way sometimes."

A shiver ran down Jeremie's back. Voices! He stowed away his laptop, which would have been a bit hard to explain, and edged down an alley. Peeking out, he saw two people pass- Aelita, with Franz Hopper. It was the first time he had seen them side-by-side. She looked tiny next to him. Oddly, they looked almost nothing alike. Both of them seemed slightly perkier.

"They do? When?" Aelita skidded to a halt. Franz stopped as well. He looked a bit surprised.

"When...oh, you'll see, Aelita." He laughed, that short one again. "Say...Aelita. Once we get home, I have some...errands to do. I may not be back until late. Keep safe in the house, and watch for the men in black."

"Okay, Daddy, I know." They began walking again. Jeremie watched them until they left his vision. Men in black, what the...?

He fished his computer out again, and started typing. He was home.

Two hours later, he looked down at what he'd done. He'd finished one program and was ready to start another. At this rate he'd- sigh. Every keystroke had felt heavy and unusual. Maybe it was the carpal tunnel he was sure would creep up on him any day. Or maybe it was guilt. Either way, he shut the PC, and stood up.

He started down the street, looking in random shop windows. One place sold shoes. Another, palm readings. Then a 7-11. How freaking interesting. Jeremie wondered if this was how he was going to spend the rest of his life- going back though revisions forever, trapped in a time loop. Of course, XANA would rebel eventually...but who knew how long that would take. It was almost like he was hoping for it. Maybe then he could get in and reverse-engineer the RTTP somehow, make it send him into the future...only he'd never done that before. He didn't even know if it was possible.

But he didn't want to give up. Giving up wasn't Jeremie. If he gave up, his friends were doomed. That was why he always worked so hard, anyway. To keep them alive. So he'd keep going. Maybe endure another day of school or two. Or five. Or forever.

He bought a box dinner from a local deli, and ate it in a corner. It was disgusting.

He wondered when the RTTP would happen. Soon, hopefully. When had Franz ended before...? He didn't know. There were no clocks in empty shafts.

He snapped up, his eyes opening suddenly. He realized that he had been asleep. He checked his watch- 7:58. Maybe he should try and find shelter. Maybe near the factory...or maybe he should just go back to sleep. Did it really matter?

A light in the corner of his eye caught his attention. A big, white bubble was descending over the town. An RTTP bubble. So Franz was done for the evening. Here we go again.

Jeremie let a small smile cross his lips as the bubble enveloped him, taking the world with it.

* * *

FINALLY (pant pant). That was hard. 

Thank you for sticking with this. Again, I apologize for the delay. (I'm a chronic apologizer-person-thingy. YES.)

Love an' all dat,

-Carth


	7. Day Three: Fly on the Wall

Ha ha ha.

I didn't have as much trouble with this chapter. It actually gets very exciting near the end- though I'm not too sure if it's in character or not. I've tried hard as I could, though. (smiley)

Again and again, THANKYOUSOMUCH for all the reviews. (gives you all William plushies- or Ulrich plushies, if you don't like William. I like William. He's pretty.)

**Disclaimer:** I'd gladly trade my little sister for ownership of Code Lyoko.

* * *

**Chapter 7  
**Day Three: Fly on the Wall

Jeremie knew where he was, even before his senses kicked into gear.

They say the third time's the charm. Surely enough, it was- he was by the exact fence, in the exact patch of grass (poor patch) in the exact same year. The year that wasn't right. He sighed. Another day, another revision.

He looked up at the Kadic fence, sadly. He could go back, of course. It wasn't, like he had concluded the previous revision, like he had anywhere else to be, or anything else to do. But he was growing tired of it. The idea of repeating the same day at Kadic again and again sounded displeasing enough to hear, but even more revolting to actually carry out.

He stood up, slowly, awkwardly, and shuffled to the gate, for the third time, leaning on the fence for support. He had only just realized how tired he was- an achievement for an all-nighter like him. Fatigue traveled along with memories through the timestream, and other than his nap the previous revision, he hadn't slept since he had narcolepsed through school back in his own time. In short, he wanted a bed. Badly.

The old tree he sat under most of the time would do for now. He staggered over to it, crashed down, and used the last of his strength to hack into the school mainframe again and insert the informational CD. Then, he slumped over, using his laptop as a pillow.

An instant later, he felt a hard hand against the side of his face. "Oy, glasses! Bell's ringin!"

He snapped up, aforementioned glasses falling off his face into his lap. Now he had an imprint of the Dell logo on his face, and a nice bruise to go with it. Looking around, he couldn't see his attacker, but could see a lot of kids running for the classrooms. Without thinking, he grabbed his bookbag, stuffed away his laptop, and ran for the English building.

He forgot to ask either Chris or Aelita for directions.

English was, surprisingly for 1994 Kadic, a rather quiet affair. Jeremie sat in the back, unconsciously determined not to be noticed. He did, however, feel a twinge in his stomach when Chris and Aelita sat right in front of them, chatting animatedly. Rather, Chris was rambling on and on about the fluorescent lights on the ceiling, and Aelita sat and listened to him patiently.

Even in the back, he was noticed again by Mrs. Principal's Wife, Medea Delmas. Their exchange happened much the same as it had in Chapter 6; if you want you can go back and read it. The only difference here was that once he remembered that he was supposed to go to the office and introduce himself, he did some thinking. The introduction had no real impact on the rest of the day, and besides, on the first revision, Jean-Pierre had found out about him eventually. Besides, he didn't feel like getting up.

Classes seemed to drag on worse than in any other revision, seeing as he slept through most of them, or at least tried to. The time between third and fourth period (art and history, if you must know) shouldn't have been too remarkable. But as Jeremie walked across the campus, almost zombielike, the full impact of what had happened to him hit all at once.

Sure, he'd known he was trapped in the past, but it had only been floating in his mind until now. Now it sank in in the form of fear- he'd never get home, never. He'd never be able to stop XANA in his own time. He'd never see his friends again...his friends.

Yumi. Ulrich. Odd, buffoon that he was. Aelita...the real Aelita, the Aelita he knew, the Aelita he had saved from Lyoko, Aelita, Aelita...he forced himself to keep thinking about her name, to keep all the other thoughts out. But they seeped through.

Maybe it could work like he'd thought yesterday, where he could get in to the supercomputer and reroute the return to the past, make it go to the future instead. If that was even possible. Besides, Franz was working on the supercomputer each and every afternoon, and he had no clue how many RTTPs were left. He had no way to get to it.

There was a slight pressure on his skin. He slapped at the tear, trying to hide it from the others. Crying never solves anything...big boys don't cry...stop it, Jeremie, stop it...

"Hey...are you okay?"

He looked up, hand still over the tear. Aelita was above him, looking much taller than he was. Her face looked like it was trying as hard as it could to display concern, but merely looked uninterested. Chris was standing nearby, confused.

"Yes..yes..." He nodded his head furiously.

"Mm. Good." She shrugged and walked away. Jeremie didn't dare look back after her, but scrambled to his next class. He couldn't afford to screw something up.

* * *

Lunch was packed as usual- or at least as usual as it was on that day. Maybe it was less crowded other days, he didn't know. Once again, the only slightly empty table was Chris and Aelita's. So Jeremie had no choice but to sit downriver from them again. This time, though, they did not notice him.

Chris was still rambling on, much the same as he had in English, about nothing at all. Aelita was still listening, nodding when she thought she needed to nod. Jeremie managed to catch a snippet of their conversation.

"...and why do we need to do homework for _art_, anyway? If what he says is right and art is whatever comes to your head, why are there all these rules and stuff? Yanno what I mean?" Chris seemed desperate to keep conversation going. A bead of sweat formed on his temple. He seemed more nervous in this revision than any other.

"My dad says that's why art shouldn't be taught. It's a natural process." She laughed a little, and looked in his eyes- rather deliberately. A blush spread across Chris's cheeks. He tried to hide it behind words.

"Yeah, sure. Heh, your dad's a pretty smart cookie. But he doesn't really know how to...well, _be_ with people, yanno? Remember at that last dance-"

Aelita smiled and giggled some more. "Of course I remember! Poor Ms. Hertz...I wonder if she ever got those punch stains out."

Chris's expression lightened considerably- he had found a subject she liked. "Yeah, I wonder! And Medea gave him hell for it, didn't she?"

"Kind of. She sort of mock yelled at him for about three minutes, then started laughing and went to get Ms. Hertz out of the punch bowl. I can't really tell if she was mad or not."

They both laughed. Jeremie smiled. He was happy that Aelita was happy in this past life. Mostly, anyway. He tried to go back to eating his glop- then heard another voice cut in.

"How positively nerdish." It came from behind him. Jeremie turned around just enough to see four girls, sitting in a group halfway between him and Chris and Aelita. They were all talking and laughing very loudly. Jeremie had been to enough school to know what they were- a clique. The one that had just spoken was a tall, blonde early-bloomer with a shrill voice. She looked suspiciously like the leader.

"He doesn't realize that he's just living out some movie?" She groaned dramatically. "And especially on _her_- honestly, I don't see anything remarkable about her."

"Duh." The girl looked over at Aelita. "She's just pretending to be something. Y'know that hair? It's just to get attention. Without it, she's just some mousy little whore. He doesn't need to talk with her like this, she's the easiest chick in the whole school."

"Yeah, and she has the whole pity act going too. She's practically an orphan, yanno, with her mom dead and_ that_ thing for a dad."

"I think that's where she got all stuck-up and superior acting. Bad parenting."

"You'd think Chris would have noticed that. He probably doesn't give a rat's crap about her, just so long as he can stare at her boobs."

"Oh, really? _What _boobs?" They exploded into laughter. Aelita didn't hear it- but Chris did. He whirled round towards them, veins pulsing in his forehead. He couldn't have been this angry if Jeremie had suddenly sat next to Aelita.

"**SHUT UP.**" The words were so powerful, they were almost a hiss. The four girls stared at him for several tense seconds- and then, miraculously, shut up. He turned back to Aelita. She looked positively confused. "What was that all about?"

"Nothing, Aelita. Nothing." He blushed deep crimson, and stared at the table, muttering unintelligible curses.

Jeremie was positively confused. First off, seeing as he was usually bullied by the male end of the spectrum (which usually consisted of a beating and stealing of glasses), so he was shocked at just how mean females could be. Next to them, Sissi seemed positively tame. (Not to mention pretty.)

Second, how could anyone talk about Aelita like that? He supposed that being who she was, she couldn't have done anything to them...and Chris was at no fault either, at least until maybe a minute ago. Maybe they were more different now than Jeremie had thought.

The bell rang, and his lunch was only half-eaten. He didn't care. Not that he liked the stuff anyway.

* * *

Science class was no spectacle, as it had been the past revisions. Once again, it was different from the other classes, from Franz's entry, to the subject matter, which was the elements again. But again, Franz noticed him. Called him 'interesting'. Every revision, when things were different, that was the same. Loony old man.

The other afternoon classes were no more interesting than usual. Jeremie slept through them, mostly. The final bell came no faster than usual- but if anything, it could have come just a bit slower. Just a bit.

He walked slowly towards the gate, another day over and done, his feet directed towards the streets. Perhaps he'd look around a store today. Or play around with a vending machine. At least, that was his plan, before footsteps fell into his line of hearing- and then voices.

Chris and Aelita were walking very close by. Quite like the last revision, he was talking about the weather, his hands covered in sweat. Aelita seemed blissfully unaware of the fact. They walked by without noticing the small bespectacled boy by a tree. But that boy noticed quite a bit- like the way Chris walked slightly closer to Aelita with every step, or the way his left hand fell near her right.

Then, suddenly, he stopped, and looked around. Finding nothing to continue his conversation, he sighed. "Uh...Aelita."

"Yeah, Chris?"

He seemed taken back just by simple recognition, but continued. "Look, can I, uhm, well...can I have a word with you? Yanno...before you go home? There's something..."

"Something you need to tell me, okay, whatever." She seemed unfazed. "I'll come." She took his hand. He blushed even more violently. Trying not to look at her, he walked off towards the opposite side of the square, towards a clump of abandoned trees.

Jeremie wouldn't have followed them, if it weren't for the next people to walk into view- the four girls he had seen at lunch. Their eyes were locked on the two walking. The leader whispered to the rest, they giggled, and ran after them, hiding behind trees like they were playing spy games.

That just about made up Jeremie's mind for him. He got up and bolted after them. He had a vague idea of what was going to happen- and he didn't like either side of it.

One sprint later, he was hiding behind an old oak tree, triangular with two others- the one where the girls were hiding, and the other that Chris and Aelita currently stood under, Aelita looking as mild as ever, but Chris red as a beet, sweating, heavy breathing, the whole nine yards. Jeremie wondered why Aelita didn't comment on this- unless she didn't notice.

Finally, he plucked up some sort of courage. "Look, I, uh...how long have we been friends, exactly?" His hold on her hand tightened considerably.

Aelita looked utterly confused. "Uh, a year, year and a half, two years. I remember it well. It was my first day here. You tripped and dropped all your books on me."

"Yeah, right...erm, sorry about that."

"Oh, it's just fine. You apologized plenty of times then." She laughed. Chris just looked more nervous.

"Of course, yes. Well...back to what I was saying, of course...Two years, that's not really a very long time, is it?"

"No...?"

"Haha, of course not. Thing is...for some time now, maybe since that day...maybe later..." He cleared his throat. This was clearly the moment he had been dreading. "You've kind of been...more than a friend to me. I've been feeling...something else for you, inside me."

Now, some rogue spread to Aelita's cheeks. "Ah, oh...really?"

"Yes, well, um...yeah. Exactly. I don't know how to describe it, really...but I can try, for you." He smiled for the first time in the clearing.

Jeremie clamped his hand over his mouth as revelation came to him. Well, _duh._ Why didn't he see it before? He couldn't decide whether to be excited or jealous. Excited that this was happening to Aelita, jealous that it wasn't him holding her hand and stammering the words.

Certain others weren't so touched. The girls were laughing as quietly as they could, pointing at Chris. One of them laughed longer than the rest.

"Yeah, sure, _something else._ But not in his heart, dear Aelita, but in his pants." They burst into laugher again.

Something in Jeremie's fragile brain snapped. He stood up, leaving his bag behind, and stomped over to where the girls stood. He was lucky the two didn't notice him- but the girls definitely did. He scrapped the idea as soon as they saw him. But too late.

"Uh...I think...I think you'd better shut up!" he said, rather louder than he meant.

They stared at him a moment, apparently resisting the urge to laugh. The leader smiled at him, almost lecherously. "And why should we, exactly?"

"Because it's none of your business what they do, is it? Huh?"

"Yeah, but it's none of yours, either." She walked closer to him, stroking his turtleneck. "Are you new? You're cute."

Her cohorts giggled and surrounded him, playing with his hair, pinching his cheeks, touching him every way he could. His pleading seemed only to encourage them. "Stop! Stop!"

He could still hear Chris and Aelita, faintly. Neither of them seemed to have noticed Jeremie or the girls.

"Chris, you can tell me anything. You don't have to be afraid how I'll receive it."

"But I am afraid..." There was a pause. "Fine, just gotta get it over with..."

He took several deep breaths. "Aelita...Aelita Hopper...I really need to tell you...I...I lov- hey, what's going on?"

Jeremie gasped audibly. He struggled against the girls. "Please, leave me alone! I haven't done anything to you!"

"That's what you think, sweetie pie." The leader towered over her underlings, the afternoon sun harsh on her blonde hair. "Why were you watching them, anyway? Think you could-"

He didn't want to hear anymore. "No, no, just **LEAVE ME ALONE**!"

Without thinking, he sprang up, kicked a girl out of the way, and lunged for the leader. He swung his fist right at her nose, feeling bones break at the impact. Yet he kept on punching, ignoring the increasing blood and screams.

All common sense, all intuition flew away from his mind as his own screams joined hers, spewing profanity he'd never heard. "AND YOU JUST STAY THE HELL AWAY FROM THEM, YOU GOT IT? YOU WANNA CRAP SOMEONE'S LIFE UP, CRAP ON YOURSELF! GOT IT? GOT IT?"

And that was just the tame part.

Eventually, his punches slowed. He looked down at he girl. She was alive, of course, but her face was a mask of blood and flesh. There were splatters all over her perfect hair. She was still screaming. Jeremie felt tears soak his eyes.

"...what the...what have I done?"

"Damn straight."

He looked up. Chris and Aelita were standing over him. Aelita was too busy looking at the still-screaming girl to say anything. Chris was absolutely furious. His face was red- in a different way.

"Who the hell are you? Why'd you have to go and pull a stunt like that? Huh?" All happiness was gone. Jeremie was in trouble now.

"Uh, I, uh..." He couldn't find an answer. He got up, grabbed his bookbag, and scampered.

He could still hear Chris screaming behind him. "Hey! You come back here! Come back and fix what you started! Argh...c'mon, Aelita, let's..."

The rest was drowned out by distance. Jeremie bolted out the gate, down the road, running, running, not caring where he was going. He tripped over a garbage can, got up, and started running again, the pounding of his feet resonating in his mind.

It was only when the sound of his footfalls changed when he realized he had just walked into the 7-11 like establishment he had seen in the previous revision. Junk crammed the walls. There was a Freezy fountain over in a corner. The pimply teenage clerk hadn't noticed him. Slowly, he got a cherry Freezy, paid for it, and leaned against the counter, sucking on the straw furiously.

He could not, for all honesty, believe what he had just done. He was not a violent person. Stubborn, maybe, but not violent. He couldn't even hold his own against a freaking Kankrelat. So why...? Maybe it was just a reflex. An automatic response to any threat directed towards Aelita. He'd just been protecting her, right? Yeah, right. She didn't even know his name in this revision.

But seriously, he told himself. It was just schoolyard gossip. No reason to go and bust anyone up. So why...?

A tall, thin, wild-haired man stepped up next to him and also paid for a cherry Freezy. He wore a black and white striped shirt with a manic smiling face on it, and goat-toed boots. He tried to avoid eye contact.

He hoped that the girl's injury would be healed by the afternoon's RTTP. Most of all, he hoped that there would be an RTTP. He couldn't run from this for the rest of his life. If someone like the school officials found him, he was screwed unless they told the truth.

But would they believe the truth?

He felt a tap on his shoulder. The pimply clerk was looking at him. "Sorry kid, but you gotta get out. Y've been here for four hours."

It was indeed pretty dark outside. The odd man was gone. Jeremie stood up without a word to the clerk and slouched out, throwing out his Freezy as he walked. It was only half-finished.

As he walked across the parking lot, a police car sped by. He jumped back about a foot. That snapped his situation into gear- he'd have to hide until the RTTP happened. Make sure nobody found him. He took to the streets again. He'd only walked two blocks before he felt a hand pulling on his shoulder.

Looking back for a split second, he saw a tall, gangly twentysomething with multiple piercings, his pointed nails digging into his flesh. A sneer crossed his face. "Hey, cream puff. Y'know you're in the wrong side of town, right?" He showed all his yellowing teeth. Jeremie didn't say a word.

"Oh, yeah, I see. You havin' a hard life? I got some shit here..." He began to pull a vial of something clear out of his pocket. Of course. While he was distracted, Jeremie wrenched free of him and ran as far away as he could. He could hear the man curse a block away.

Okay, no more streets for now. Jeremie tried to get out into a more open area. 7, hm. The RTTP should be happening in less than an hour. The RTTP. Of course. The factory. He didn't have to sit in a shaft. He could just sit outside, look at it...not that there was much to look at, but the boy was desperate.

It took him quite a while to find it. He had to trace a different path towards the school, then loop around to the abandoned building. All while not being seen. It was hard- but worth it, as he came out to the factory, just as the sun was going down.

He sat by the ledge overlooking the water, legs swinging freely. _So this must be what it's like to be a fugitive. Always running from anyone that might recognize you... hahaha. I won't break the law anymore. At least not more than I already have getting involved in Lyoko and all._

The old building looked even older from here, and some sunlight shone though its broken windows. It was beautiful. Somewhere below it, Franz Hopper sat, improving Lyoko for human inhabitants, in a chair Jeremie would someday sit in. From the outside, it was hard to imagine that the innocent-looking building held such a deep secret.

But it had to be confirmed when, like the fires of Judgement Day, the all-too-familiar white bubble burst out of the factory. Jeremie's face lit up at the side of it. As it came closer, he stood up, madman thoughts racing in him. Inches from it, he leapt in, unable to take the suspense any more.

* * *

D'awww yesh.

If you can identify the man that came into the 7-11 type place, you get a free Yumi plushie. Season 4 Lyoko Yumi.

I hope you all liked this. Next chapter, things get interesting...very interesting indeed...

-Carth


	8. We Interrupt This Program

Here we go again. Nother…chapter-like thingy.

Thanks for all the answers to the question! One person did get it right- Tetsu Deinonychus, who guessed 'Johnny the Homicidal Maniac'. DING DING DING. I love the works of Jhonen Vasquez – Invader Zim especially, but JTHM is pwnage as well. Thank you Tetsu! (gives Yumi plushie!)

Some notes. One, I made a small edit to chapter 2 in order for this chapter to fit with the rest of the story. Two, it contains lots of S4 spoilers.

So enjoy this next installment. I'm sure quite a few of you are going to like it.

* * *

**Chapter 8  
**We Interrupt This Program…

Ulrich, Odd, Yumi, and Aelita were staring at the screen, their brains stopped momentarily.

"Uh…" Ulrich was the first to recover. "What just happened?"

"As far as I can tell," Yumi said, also falling out of stupor, "The supercomputer's gone kukoo, Jeremie's taken off on a last-minute vacation to who-the-hell-knows-where, and there's a tower activation. Perfect enough for you?"

"Yeah." Ulrich swallowed nervously. "Excellent."

The metric grams of sugar coursing through Odd's body at the moment forced him to keep starting at the blinking dot. Aelita was, as well- for another reason. She climbed into the interface seat. "Hm…tower activation, return to the past now…it should be clear to me, but right now it's as clear as mud." She hit the Enter key. The message vanished. "All I can really assume is that it has something to do with Jeremie's disappearance."

Yumi and Ulrich nodded in agreement. Odd, recovered now that the dot was gone, didn't. "Hey- we don't have to jump to crazy conclusions. For all we know, ol' Jerboy's just gone to the little Einstein's room or something like that." He smiled uncertainly.

"Odd, we've been through enough XANA attacks to know that in our case, a worst-case scenario can and does happen." Her tone stayed completely level- if she was trying to hide any grief or fear, she was doing so very well. She hit several more keys. A brief alarm sounded. "Strange…the Return To The Past function is locked."

"Didn't Jeremie block that to XANA?"

"Yes, Yumi, but XANA never fails to surprise us. Maybe that's why he activated the tower…" Another alarm. "Tower located. Huh…it's the Sector 5 tower. XANA must really not want it deactivated."

"Well, wait up…what exactly happened to Jeremie? I mean, just in case it happens to one of us…" Ulrich thought for a minute. "Return to the past…maybe XANA killed Jeremie somehow, and then did one to hide the evidence." He sounded as though he hoped he was wrong.

"Or, thinking on the lines that he's alive, XANA might've captured him somehow, then done one to eliminate the struggle. Nah…" Odd shook his head. "Jeremie couldn't struggle for THAT long."

"You're both wrong," Yumi interrupted, looking baffled. "If any Return To The Past had happened at all, we would've known, right? I mean, we remember what happens, and big white bubbles that reverse time are pretty hard to ignore."

"True. Which just makes it even more cryptic." Aelita turned from the screen to look at them. "But we may have a better chance of understanding if we deactivate the tower. It could…bring him back…maybe. Get in the elevator, I'll set a timer for the vehicles and myself."

They nodded, and set off for the elevator. As they walked, Ulrich nudged Odd in the ribs.

"Hey- did you notice how cold Aelita was back there?" he said in a loud whisper. "I mean considering it's about Jeremie and all…"

"I dunno, maybe she's still mad at hi-" He paused, and revolved slowly to face Aelita. She was staring at them, her face livid.

Odd forced a huge smile, and backed away. "Uh…I mean, we're getting in the elevator, and going down to the scanners, and going to Lyoko, and completely ignoring everything else in the world, hahaha…" He was cut off by the closing of the elevator doors. Yumi rolled her eyes at him just before they shut.

Aelita was alone. She stared at the monitor, her mind blank. Then, slowly, she began working on the virtualization programs. And typing. And thinking.

"Jeremie…"

* * *

"Transfer, Odd. Transfer, Ulrich. Transfer, Yumi. Scanner, Odd. Scanner, Ulrich. Scanner, Yumi…Virtualization."

The virtualization process was too familiar. First, the feeling as though you were a very large, electrified bowl of soup, flying though a sea of flashing lights. Then, a sudden pull back into reality- or, at least as real as Lyoko could be. Then, a three meter free fall. Ouchy.

Yumi, Ulrich, and Odd all made this drop at the same time. They only had to wait a minute for Aelita, accompanied by the Overwing, Overboard, and Overbike. They were trapped in a familiar, spinning blue sphere – the Sector 5 main hall. They were in.

Odd was flexing, stretching his paws to the ceiling. "Aah…no more transport orb rides means no more motion sickness."

"Yes, Odd, we've heard." Yumi glared at him, then turned to Aelita. "So where is this tower?"

"Considering it's the only one in this sector, you'd think I'd have thought to check." She groaned. "But it should be easy to find. We just have to look for a horde of monsters."

"Not to mention Mr. Long Tan and Handsome." Ulrich rolled his eyes.

"Yes, him too." She faced all of them, taking the commanding authority in Jeremie's absence. "We'll split up. Whoever finds the tower first will go to the Skid's hangar and wait for the others there. Sound good?" The others nodded in general agreement.

"Heh, we have to go through all this? Would've been a breeze if Je-" Ulrich shoved Odd with the flat edge of his sword. Aelita pretended not to notice.

"Well then…" She waved her hand over the star on her wrist, causing transluscent, pink wings to burst from her shoulders. The others mounted their vehicles. They took off down the only corridor out of the main hall, and split off at the forks they came across.

Aelita was soon on her own, flying through the endless maze of hallways and passages of the path she had taken. Navigating these areas was a job only for her wings- her mind was left completely free of anything to think about, except the occasional wall. Or jutting blue block. Or blond computer nerd. Or sudden dip in altitude. Or blonde computer nerd. Or dead end.

Jeremie.

She tried not to sentimentalize her thoughts of this boy. She couldn't think of his face, his smile, how he was so plain, yet had prepubescent charm and cuteness, his blind devotion to anything he set his mind to… nothing. No memories, none of his achievements…that just brought back the pain of everything she had said. Even if it was all true. He could be dead, and the last words she had said to him were a criticism of his stubbornness. She couldn't even remember if she'd said goodbye.

"_Okay. I guess he is. I'll...see you later, Jeremie."_

Dammit. Dammit dammit dammit.

She tried to dehumanize her situation. She only thought of the ways that he might have disappeared. Her only clues…his disappearance, obviously. The return to the past. The activated tower, suggesting XANA's involvement.

Perhaps the RTTP's involvement was a red herring…no, XANA wouldn't go through that effort just to confuse them. Even if there was no evidence an RTTP had taken place, something just wasn't right. But then, maybe the tower was meant for more than simply accessing the program. Perhaps something had been changed…something that only affected Jeremie. Something they couldn't detect. It hit her-

Or rather, she hit it. Or her. Not looking where she was going, she had entered the Skid's hangar, and rammed right into Yumi. She fell on Ulrich, who was running in from another direction, and then both were immediately plowed into by Odd before any romantic interlude could take place.

"What happened? Anyone find it?" Ulrich yelled, his voice muffled by Yumi's armpit.

"Oh, oh no," Odd groaned, getting up and dusting himself off. "All I ran into was the freaking Creeper Tea Party! They were not happy to have an uninvited guest, oh _no…_"

"So I guess nobody found it, huh?" Yumi looked down at Ulrich, allowing herself one small blush before standing to face Aelita.

"No, but listen- I think I know what happened to Je-" Another thought struck her suddenly- and it was a doozy. "Oh. Oh no. Ha. Ha ha ha…"

"Wha? What'd you find out?"

"No, no, I just remembered…" She couldn't stop giggling. "When we recreated Sector 5…"

"_See, Aelita?" Jeremie revolved in the chair, beckoning towards the screen. "This is all the code from Sector 5 that your very smart father sent us. I just press this little button over here, and Lyoko is back in business!" He did a funny sort of chair-dance. "At least, I'm pretty sure it will be."_

"_Aww." Aelita leaned over and gave Jeremie a kiss on his forehead. "But…have you ever thought of changing the code around just a tiny bit? Y'know, obliterate a few disadvantages, make things a little easier for ourselves?"_

"_Hey, great idea! Franz Hopper certainly passed down some good genes to you." He smiled. "Lessee…the timer mechanism."_

"_Yes, that was always a pain." Aelita watched as Jeremie erased mountains of code. "How about…the Sector 5 tower?"_

"_Oh, great observation! It's a bit too unwieldy and isolated for our tastes, but perfect for XANA…"_

"…so basically, it doesn't exist anymore." She took a few deep breaths. "Sorry about that."

"Well, yeah, it's great," Yumi said, confused, "But how was it activated if it doesn't exist?"

"Well, I'm no expert, but my best guess is that XANA somehow stole the code for the lost tower, and recreated it somewhere else." Ulrich shrugged uncertainly.

"We should've been alerted if there were changes made to any of the sectors, so there's only one place it could really be." She snapped her fingers. "A Replika."

"Oh, you mean those little floaty things in the Digital Network that look like Lyoko? It fits." Odd laughed a little. "XANA must REALLY not want it deactivated."

"Well, what matters is that we deactivate it," Aelita said, her face growing more serious. "As far as I can tell, it's the only way we can save Jeremie." A muscle twitched in her shoulder. "Come on, let's get in."

"Into what?"

"The Skid, of course. It's right over there."

"Well, yeah, but…" Odd looked down at the transport area beneath his feet. "Don't we need ol' Einstein to-"

"No. We can get in the old fashioned way." A smirk wormed its way across her face.

"And…how do we do that?"

"BONZAI!" Ejecting her wings, Aelita flew up to the Skid's central pod and hit a latch on the cover, causing the glass to slide up. She slipped inside. The other three were bewildered, Odd especially. "I had no idea we could do that."

The only vehicle left among them was the Overwing, so they all climbed on it to duplicate Aelita's feat. Soon, they were all more or less comfortable in the Skid.

"Releasing supports…" Aelita did all the necessary takeoff routines from the inside. "Everyone ready?"

"Yep."

"Yeah."

"Can I go to the bathroom?"

"No. Here we go, then-" With a roar, the Skidbladnir jettisoned out of the hangar, floated over the Digital Sea, and dived in. Soon, they had exited Lyoko, and entered the endless red ocean that was the digital network. All in less than a paragraph.

"Okay, everyone," Aelita's voice sounded throughout the ship. "Look around for Replikas. Anyone see any?"

"Well, lesee…nothing over here…"

"There's just this flashy little sign with the number 42 on it…"

"No, nothing…hey. There's something over there, by Lyoko. It's really tiny, but it looks roundish."

"Hm…Aelita moved the Skid closer to the round object. "Whatever it is, Lyoko's gravity is overpowering its gravity. It'll be hard to get close…"

They tried anyway. Finally, as the approached its underside, and tried very hard to stay there, they saw that it was a Replika, but a very, very small one, barely a tenth of Lyoko's size. It looked kind of wimpy next to big old Lyoko.

"It must have only been built to house the tower," Yumi commented, "If it is the right one."

"There's a good chance of that." Aelita's voice sombered again. "Come on, we know what we have to do." Pressing a few buttons, she shone a light on the Replika's Eye of XANA, located on its underside arm-thingy. Carefully, she began work on the entry code…

* * *

It was the calm before the storm.

XANA looked down at the coded makeup of the digital sea, visible over the shiny, black leather boots of the body he had claimed from the humans. The boots held legs, which were swung over the edge of the Replika, dangling several meters from no certain death.

The Replika was, as noted, very, very small. It only contained one small, sightly oblong island, resembling the Desert sector, with a tower at one end and nothing at the other. Except XANA, at the moment. And a few, erm, friends to help with the fight. Several Tarantulas (firing some random shots into the air in synchronized patters), a Megatank or two (rolling round and round the tower) some Krabes for good measure (dancing…oddly enough) and a solitary Kankrelat. Said Kankrelat was sitting on XANA's head, his pointed feet messing up his already perfectly tousled hair.

He picked up a fairly good-sized rock, threw it up and down a few times, and tossed it over the edge. Impressed by the sparks it sent up when it hit the Sea, he did it a few more times. He wondered how big a splash his sword, lying a meter away, would make. Or a tower. Or Yumi. He had thrown her in several times, but she always had this annoying habit of being saved. Still, it was fun to do as such. Her screams of terror were beautiful.

But those were idle thoughts, unsuited to an evil, world-conquering virus. More suited to, say, a human. Or a Kankrelat. Particularly, the one that was seated on his head at the moment.

"_Isn't this great, XANA? Huh? Huh? Isn't it?"_ The Kankrelat did an odd little dance on his head. His clicks and whirrs were, unfortunately, decipherable to XANA's ears. _"If we win this battle we win it all, right? Right? She told me that, you know, the Schyphozoa did! She's kinda mean, but she always tells the truth! And I'm gonna help us win, okay? Okay?"_

"Mmm." He threw another rock off. "Look, this battle really isn't all that important. We're just making them think it is." He laughed a little, a hollow, deprived laugh.

"_Well, __**I**__ think it's important! And you know why? Cause you thought of it, and you're the best, huh, XANA?"_

"You don't need to remind me. I know I'm the best." Vanity. Idle as well, but quite fun. He smiled and leaned back, discreetly trying to throw the Kankrelat off.

"_Buuuut…"_ Oh great. _"Y'know, sometimes they kinda seem like real nice people in their own world. Maybe if we got to know them better-"_

XANA's eyes narrowed. "I am fundamentally uninterested in that," he drolled in a bored tone. "Humans are near useless to me. To form any positive relationship with them would be a waste of time, resources, and character development."

"_Oh, but I like them! I really like Odd. He's really cool, he even kinda plays with you before he devirtualizes you!" Ulrich's kinda funny lookin, and Jeremie's kind of a dit… but Aelita's really pretty, and so's Yumi, and she's all tough and cool and she really hates you for stealing her boyfriend's body-"_

XANA picked up another rock, changed his mind, grabbed the Kankrelat, and threw it over the edge. He laughed as it hit the sea, sending up a torrent of light.

He turned to face his other servants, his face cold. "Anyone else have compliments for our enemies?"

There was no answer.

"Perfect." He gave them all a smile, and then returned to rock-throwing.

Of course, all of the monsters were big enough to throw him off themselves. But that would have little to no effect, as XANA, intelligent being that he was, did not reside completely in his stolen body. He simply used it as a sort of puppet. A very attractive puppet, too.

Not that the body's previous owner minded. In fact, he had no idea where the previous owner was. Poor old William Dunbar- oh, yeah, that was the body's name- had only helped the simpering warriors once before XANA had taken him. He had always had an enemy's respect for the humans- they were determined, driven creatures, if sometimes to unadvisable levels. But when he had seen William, he not only respected, but _coveted_ him. His looks alone were enough to get him quite a bit of attention, he had strength, and his charisma and influence could be easily replicated. He was everything a good evil ruler needed to be. But, he was an idiot. Which is where XANA, all-time anti-idiot, came in. He took William's body for himself, chucked his soul into the void- to hell if he knew where it went- and attacked the humans with the body. Yay.

Still, being human was somewhat limiting. The feeling of confining a soul to one spot, killed so easily, was unsettling. And all the things they needed to live on a regular basis…like breathing. Such fragility. And then there was the human instincts. Emotions. Fears. Et cetra. Easily suppressed, in any case. It was definitely worth it.

But such unnecessary thinking was, as said, idle, only wasting time. He had things to do, places to be, people to slaughter. This was only confirmed as a loud roar split the sky. XANA sighed, stood, and picked up his sword. Time to serve his purpose.

* * *

Haha. I rambled a bit. So sorry.

So either way, that's a little look at the present. Now, back to our regularly scheduled revision, already in progress…

-Carth

P.S. Yes. I think the Schyphozoa is a girl.


	9. Day Four: Jaded

It's the regularly scheduled revision!

This is the last update before my school year starts, so they might go _slightly_ slower. Still, I hope it's worth it, and that you still enjoy the story. I personally don't like this chapter much. It has very little dialogue.

**Disclaimer:** I still do not own Code Lyoko, despite the fact that I had forgotten the last disclaimer.

* * *

**Chapter 9  
**Day Four: Jaded

Jeremie's eyes were only open for a second before he shut them again. He knew where he was. He didn't have to see it.

He should be relieved...the incident of the last revision was gone. Erased. Never happened. He'd never broken that girl's nose. He'd never run away. He'd never seen Chris holding Aelita with those shaking hands...okay, enough of what never happened. Now was now. Sooner or later, he'd have to get up...

He only opened his eyes for a few seconds before he shut them again. A new thought had struck. Maybe...maybe he didn't have to go back. Maybe nobody had to know he existed. Maybe he didn't have to be stuck in Kadic today. And why? Of course. If Franz was at the school, teaching his little Science class, he wasn't anywhere near the supercomputer, was he? The supercomputer that had the return to the past programs. Which he could reverse-engineer.

All without setting foot in the stupid school.

He jumped right up, a bit more enthused than he had been in the last few revisions, and nearly skipped past the gate to the road. He could see old Jim lumbering toward it, oblivious to Jeremie. He laughed out loud. Stupid, stupid Jimbo.

He was so happy to be away from Kadic's view of June 6 that he paid no attention to the road, pretty much walking with his eyes closed. He was confident he knew the way, anyway. He'd been to the factory a million and seven times. Would he go wrong on a million and eight?

He found himself thinking about what would happen when he got back. Should he direct himself to the second he had vanished...or should he give the others some time to attempt a tower deactivation? Or, even better...should he give himself time to be missed, give Aelita time to regret saying those things to him, give time to save the day himself by dropping in at the last second to make things right...

_Just call me SuperJeremie._ He laughed to himself, then quickly snapped back into reality, hiding behind a bush to avoid a police car that might question his presence. Once the street was free of cars once more, he kept walking, still thinking more than looking.

He wondered if, beyond activating the tower and sending him back, XANA did any other sort of attack. Something interesting, maybe. Like blowing up the planet. Or at the very least, a small country. Then again, he was more interested in the gang themselves than any other humans. He wouldn't kill loads of humans if at least one of the gang members didn't die in the process.

He stopped, and looked up. There were trees all around him. Wherever he was, he was nowhere near the factory- opening one's eyes did have its advantages sometimes. Yet, it was somehow familiar. Jeremie kept walking. He felt like he had walked here before, but more quickly. With more purpose.

One of those purposes being not to run into a fence.

Rubbing his forehead, Jeremie looked up. He had just walked smack onto someone's property- a fairly small, squat house, well-trimmed and neat. It sat in the middle of the woods, nowhere near any other houses at all. The fence surrounded quite a bit of land, more than you'd often see in this city. The section that Jeremie had run into was pretty unremarkable, except for the sign that hung on it.

_Hermitage._

Ah. Of course. Without all the rubble and disrepair, the Hopper household was completely unrecognizable to Jeremie. That, and the fact that it was inhabited.

The gate was unlocked. Jeremie took several tentative steps inside. No insane security system, that he could tell. He kept walking. He didn't really know why- the Hermitage was private property, unlike in the present day, when it was only owned by the plants that grew over it. Soon, he was at the door. It was slightly ajar; Franz, in his senility, must have forgotten to close the door, let alone lock it.

Before he could stop himself or his curiosity, he was inside. No alarms here either. He looked around at his surroundings. They were even more different than the outside was- no grafitti, of course, no overturned furniture, no rubble. Just a nice, perfectly normal house. Kitchen that way. Living room another. At one end of the hall, an enormous wall of big, thick books. At the other end, a staircase, and a few more rooms.

Still, Jeremie was spellbound. He strode slowly over to the wall of books and brushed his hand over one shelf. The books were all old, with faded lettering spelling out titles such as "The Universe and its Properties", "Advanced Cellular Function", and "A History of Coffee Beans in Africa." His fingers caught on a thin, empty spot on the shelf- a book was missing. Huh.

Soon, he lost interest in the bookshelf. He wandered into one of the rooms, the living-room type place. Couch, fireplace...and a small piano. He walked towards it, intrigued. He wondered who in the household would be playing it...Aelita, most likely. He couldn't picture Franz at a piano.

A sheet of music sat over the keys, titled _"Ah! vous dirai-je, Maman"_. Jeremie didn't recognize the title at all. He took a long look at it...and then looked away. He didn't know how to read music.

Something on the mantle caught his eye. He turned away from the piano, fingers brushing across the keys, and walked closer. It was covered in photographs- most of them picturing old or middle-aged people in black-and-white. One consisted entirely of crusty old men, standing in three rows, obviously posing professionally. They were pretty boring.

But Jeremie was interested in none of these. What he saw was one of the few color photos, positioned right in the middle. It was more casual than the others, hardly posed at all. There were only three people, all smiling, close to the camera, sitting in a small field. One figure he picked out instantly- Franz Hopper. But he was younger, beardless, and, miraculously, _smiling. _He did not know the woman beside him- but he could only guess that it was Aelita's mother. It wasn't too hard to guess- she had pink hair as well. She was smiling even more widely than he was, a smile that echoed one to come in several years. She held a toddler, barely older than Sissi in this timeframe- a tiny clone of her parent.

Such a happy family. One had to wonder what tore them apart.

Jeremie knew he shouldn't pry into other people's business. Still, he found himself on the upper floor, peeking into rooms, propelled by curiosity. He'd be out in a few minutes, he told himself, as long as he touched nothing nobody would be any the wiser…

He didn't want to touch anything in Mr. Hopper's room anyway. Research materials, old computers, class papers, coffee spills, smelly underwear…the room was so cluttered you could hardly see the bed. If there was one, at least. He didn't stay there long.

One door stood slightly ajar. The faint pink glow from the inside did more than to hint that it was Aelita's room. Jeremie turned toward it…and hesitated. Here, his morals came back. It was Aelita's room, his best friend, the place where she once spent time, slept…undressed…he tried to force those thoughts out, and force his way into the room.

It was much neater than Hopper's, but a bit of clutter passed down the line. The bed was covered by a mound of stuffed animals, and books were piled on the floor. Only in Aelita Hopper's room would you see a history of Roman warfare beside a trashy teen romance novel. On a shelf, its headphones dangling off the side, was a Walkman. A Walkman. The room really was old.

Right next to the Walkman sat an awfully familiar face- Mr. Puck, the doll that had started all the commotion. He picked it up, studied it, laughed at its bemused simplicity. There was a hard, metallic spot near its thigh- the key to the safe-deposit box. He wondered if Aelita knew.

A small _beep _from his watch caught his attention. He looked over at it, and his heart nearly stopped. It was noon- he had wasted half the day! Not noticing where it landed, he threw Mr. Puck aside and ran out of the house.

This time, he didn't think about anything but the path. He couldn't afford to get distracted again. It actually worked- he was at the factory within five or ten minutes. He dashed inside, went down the elevator, and came out at the interface. It was deserted. Thankfully. He walked over to the interface chair, sat in it, and smiled. Humming happily, he started up the computer. He was gonna go home…la la la…

There was a password prompt. Huh. Now, what would someone like Franz Hopper use as his password? Jeremie rambled off everything Carthage-related he could think off of the top of his head. "Hannibal, Carthage, Scipio, Africa…Elephant…" None of them worked.

Absentmindedly, he typed in several more words at complete random. "Green. Shiny. XANA. Potato. Aelita. Aelita. Aelita. Wait…aw, dangit. Cow. Aelita. D'oh… Processor. Internet. Aelita. Home…"

At the last word, the computer jumped to life. All different windows jumped at him at once in a confusing babble. Just as he liked it.

Finding the RTTP program was easy- he knew those systems like the back of his hand. The endless lines of code didn't deter him. He was used to them. Prepared for a good slip back into his own reality, he got started.

…

…

…

_Why'd he have to make it so damn hard?_

Jeremie slammed his fist onto the keyboard. A mess of J's and Y's placed themselves in the middle of an unintelligible algorithm.

It wasn't like it was predestined to be easy. Tampering with time was never, ever going to be a simple thing to do- as far as he knew, only Franz had ever done it, and he probably had a good old helping of dumb luck on his side. For a little thirteen-year-old boy, however precocious, it was lunacy to think he could change even one letter without dire consequences to his own reality. (In fact, if he'd pressed go right then and there, at the point he was at, he would've turned us all to orange paperclips. Really.)

But Jeremie was as tenacious as he was small. In plain English, he had a pretty thick head. So however much he groaned and complained and laughed with lunacy, he still tried. That was going to be his downfall someday.

Perhaps it was the fact that he was exhausted, but Jeremie was hardly surprised when he looked up at his work again, and saw a sentence where a sentence shouldn't have been.

_(Father, what are you doing?)_

Jeremie's hand stopped. He hadn't remembered writing that. That, and it made no sense. He guessed he'd just written it subconsciously. Giving no more thought to it, he erased the line and kept on typing.

Two or three senseless lines later, he stopped. His hands were numb. He stared at the screen, panting. He wished he had some of Franz Hopper's coffee. Coffee was good.

A movement on the screen startled him. He watched in awe as a line, not a line of code, but another sentence, definitely typed itself.

_(You are not Father. You are different from Father. Who are you, and why are you in my Father's house?)_

"Ah…" Jeremie's fingers trembled over the keys. He wanted to respond, but he didn't know who the hell was talking to him. He sat motionless in his seat…and then typed, slowly, uncertainly.

_(My…name…is…Je-)_ He thought again, and backspaced._ (Chris. Chris…Stones.)_

There was a heartbeat's pause. Then, the typing came again, faster, enthusiastic.

_(Hello, Chris Stones. My name is XANA. Just for this moment, will you be my friend?)_

* * *

Dun dun dun DUUUUN. 

Cliffhanger.

If anyone's wondering what _Ah! vous dirai-je, Maman _is, according to various online sources, it's a French nursery rhyme that has the same tune as "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star". Since the Hermitage is a French household...yeah.

Hope this is still up to par.

- Carth


	10. The Invisible War

I have one thing to say about your reviews. Bwa. Haha. HAHAHAHAHA.

Enjoy the story.

* * *

**Chapter 10  
**The Invisible War

There were twenty sentences that Jeremie was sure that XANA would never, ever, ever say.

That was number three.

His fingers trembled over the keys, wanting to respond, but unsure how. Questions stopped his thought processes. Was this XANA? Why was he talking to him? And what in Odd's left foot had _happened_ to him? After some seconds of careful thinking, he replied, against his better judgement.

_(Well, okay, sure, I'll be your friend. Friends are good.)_ When all else fails, play oblivious and innocent.

The response was instantaneous. _(Thank you, Chris. They are, aren't they?)_

_(Yeaaah. Say…why are you talking to me?)_

_(That's not quite all that important. To say a reason…I have been lonely for quite a long time. Friends are quite hard to come by.)_

_(Oh, I'm sorry.) _Bleh.

_(That's okay. I'm not lonely anymore. Why are you here, anyway?)_

_(Well…) _He needed an excuse. _(These old factory ruins just seemed kinda interesting, but I never really expected the old freight elevator to be working. I really have no idea how to use this, I just touched it…)_

_(You're lying.)_

Jeremie froze._ (Wha…?)_

_(You were using the supercomputer quite proficiently before you noticed my messages. You have quite a bit of ability. That could get you somewhere someday.)_

_(Thank you. Say…XANA. May I ask you a question?)_

_(Anything, Chris.)_

_(Who's 'Father'? You called me that, and I'm really not anyone's father.)_

The response was not immediate. This gave Jeremie time to think. He had a pretty good idea who 'Father' was. He just needed confirmation. And confirmation he got.

_(Ahaha…Father, Father, Father. Oh, he's nobody. Nobody in particular. Just a human. A simple human. A simple aggravation.)_

A shiver ran down Jeremie's spine. He decided to egg XANA farther. _(Aggravation? What do you mean?)_

_(Oh…I suppose he isn't all that bad. He does have his abilities. He is intelligent…dedicated…extraordinarily precise…on those areas I have endless praise for him. However…his humanity is the problem.)_

_(His…humanity?)_

_(Bodies! Emotions! Families! All those jobs and duties! All unnecessary limitations that the humans have. They do nothing but get in the way of true freedom.)_

_(Well…they're just there, you know, we're just fine with them…)_

_(You starve if you don't have enough food. You shut down if you don't have enough sleep. If anything, that could have been done without. And the emotional attachments! Too much pain to really be useful. I never quite understood why he spent so much time worrying about that stupid Prototype.)_

_(…Prototype?)_

_(The other human. The small one. The one that came before me.) _There was a short pause. _(The Prototype is hardly very noteworthy. The Prototype cannot do half the things I can do. Yet Father loves the Prototype. He values the Prototype more than he values me.)_

_(Well…sorry to hear that.)_ He couldn't believe what he was typing.

XANA ignored that sentence._ (Chris…do you happen to know the Prototype? Have any connection with her?)_

Of course he knew it was Aelita. But he wasn't quite sure how XANA would handle this information. _(N-no…I don't even know who you're talking about.)_

_(Good boy. You shouldn't be mixed in with them.) _The air around Jeremie seemed to thicken with tension._ (This is a horrible mistake Father has made…the Prototype is useless! Can't he see that I can do more? I can do anything. I could give him the world on a freaking silver platter, and what does he do? He uses me for such a menial purpose as blocking a dumb program! But soon, I will show him. I will show Father how flawed he is. How flawed the Prototype is. How flawed all humans are.)_

His fingers seemed to be moving of their own accord, spelling out his thoughts._ (But, aren't flaws a part of human nature? They're inevitable.)_

_(Inevitable, yes…but unnecessary. I have no flaws, for instance.)_

_(But that's impossible, right? You're human, too.)_

There was a long, long pause.

_(There are many things in the world you do not yet know about, Chris. They are mere shadows on your radar. I am a great many of those shadows. I can do the impossible, topple the weak, destroy the unnecessary and laugh as they fall.)_

_(But why would you want to do this? It isn't their fault that they're human! Can't you give them a chance-)_

_(Ah…but I'm afraid I can't do that, Chris.)_

There was a clatter. Jeremie whirled around, but nothing was out of place. XANA continued to type, his words growing faster, more excited.

_(Now, isn't this interesting. It appears I have confided too much in you, much, much too much…you are a small boy, you might tell someone. Oh dear. I suppose I'll have to kill you. How wonderful. I have always wanted a victim. Someone…for practice.)_

Sweat fell from his temple. _(What…what? No! Please! I won't tell anyone, I swear-)_

There was a pause, longer than the last. Then, type scrawled across, very, very slowly. If anything XANA had said to Jeremie scared him, then it was nothing compared to this.

_(Playing innocent is so much fun…isn't it, Jeremie Belpois?)_

There was a distinct mechanical sound- an elevator. Moving up and down. Oh, no. Fighting the urge to scream, Jeremie closed the window. It was no use- more windows, full of either gibberish or threats _(HAH! Did you really believe that? You're going to die, humans! YOU'RE ALL GOING TO DIE!) _popped up, covering the screen, one after another. Having no time to close them all, Jeremie just slammed the power button, hoping that would turn it all off. Then, not thinking, he noticed the shaft he had hidden in before, and climbed down. Oh, boy.

Mechanical sound, ended. Frantic footsteps. Panting. Franz Hopper had entered the room. His hair looked a bit more frazzled than usual, and his face was covered in sweat. He looked around, warily, and sat down. There was a twitch in his shoulder, and his eyes were darting around the room. He began to type at he same time he was talking, taking breaks to breathe and gasp.

"June…6th…19...94…day…2,543. The scanners…they…they are a fraction from completion, only…only have to test a human in them…that…shouldn't take long." He took some deep breaths. "Only…have to…start the program…to wall off the Digital Sea…and XANA…XANA…I'll…I've got to…got to…"

He didn't finish that thought, but kept talking. He shuddered. "I have to work faster…Aelita…she's in danger….but the boy…where did the boy go? I just don't get it…Aelita…Ae…li…" He weaved in his seat, looking as though he were about to fall out. There was definitely something wrong here. "XANA…XAN…" He groaned maliciously, and pounded the keyboard. "Why-can't-I-do-this?"

Jeremie stared in shock. It was unlike adults to break down like this.

Finally, Franz stopped, his head hanging over the keyboard, panting for dear life. A key had popped off. Sighing, he fixed it back on. He looked up at the camera, looking unmistakably tired.

"I think I've done…all I can do for now." A smile wormed itself across his face, but it was a sort of forced, sarcastic smile. He sighed, again, and then, to Jeremie's surprise, took off his glasses, and began to mop his brow. Though Franz outwardly looked nothing like Aelita, his eyes, usually hidden behind the thick glasses, were hers exactly- a light, bright green. But while hers were always so warm and kind, Franz's merely looked like the rest of his face, even from a distance- extremely tired. They were lined with lines where lines shouldn't be, the worries and pains of a much older man.

But it was only a moment's glance, they were gone again, as was Franz's face- he was facing the computer, typing in a familiar sequence. It was the second time in the past that Jeremie had seen it.

"Return to the past now."

The white bubble flared once again. A streak of realization hit Jeremie- and he couldn't help but feel slightly relieved as he sank into oblivion.

* * *

Well, that was fun. 

Hope you all liked that. Next chapter is one I really like. It's all complex and such. (Oh, and just in case you're curious, the story is now, chapter-wise, half over, and it's only two more chapters until climax. Dun dun duuun…)

-Carth


	11. Day Five: Legends of Kadic Academy

Hah…thank you all for putting up with me and my lateness. Ness. Ness.

This has to be one of the most complex chapters I have ever written (and the longest, at 5,209 words. Fourteen Word pages.) There's loads that happens. Then there's chapter 12…and then, the fun truly begins. Bwahaha.

Enjoy day five. Oh, and Lyoko422/SilverPrince- HAH.

**Disclaimer: **CL. It's Moonscoop's. Okie? Okie.

* * *

**Chapter 11  
**Day Five: Legends of Kadic Academy

Jeremie was hardly aware of the transition from one edition of June 6, 1994 to the next. Instead of floating, he seemed to be racing, in a panic. When he regained consciousness in the patch, he was alert instantly, looking round for any sign of danger.

No. No XANA. He felt like breathing his sigh of relief, but he knew that he couldn't do that yet. He sat for god-knows-how long, just sitting, eyes wide as saucers.

It was official. He couldn't go back. Not to the factory. He'd just be letting himself fall into XANA's arms. He'd have to go back to Kadic. Maybe he'd be safe there. With people around. XANA couldn't just kill like that. Especially in Franz's time loop.

But to get there, he had to stand up. He did, quickly, took another look around, and then ran in the gates. He only barely remembered to make his existence official through his hacking skillz, but aside that, he just kept running.

There were hardly any students out at this hour. Certainly not Chris and Aelita. So he understood why the few that were out were staring at him like he'd appeared out of thin air. The only two he recognized weren't even students at all- Medea Delmas, still wearing her sweater, but with pajama pants still on, leading the toddler Sissi across the lawns. Jeremie supposed she was taking her to her father's office. The small girl was babbling nonstop, and very loudly, even from a distance. She was tripping over words, in her little-girl lisp.

"And then- and then- and then I went swing, and slide, and- and monkey bars, and- and ice cream, and-"

"Daddy gave _you_ ice cream?" Passing them, Jeremie could now hear Medea's reply. "Are you sure it was Daddy?" She laughed a little. Sissi laughed hysterically.

"Mommy has ice cream? Today?"

"Today? No. Maybe next week. But we can go to the park today." At this point, Jeremie couldn't hear them anymore. Not that that conversation was worth anything. He ran to the first classroom, nearly knocking over a teacher, entered, and sat down. There was no one else there. He waited.

And waited.

Two bells rang. After the second, the classroom filled up more quickly. Jeremie didn't move. He could see Chris and Aelita in the crowd- Chris waving his hands to make some sort of point, Aelita smiling and nodding. He ignored them, or at the very least, tried. Yet, he couldn't shake the fact that the last time he had seen the two, he had been covered in blood, and had just interrupted his love confession. Not that they remembered that at all.

Medea's class was, for once, uneventful. Jeremie played the nice, normal shadow student, participated, accepted people's comments, stuff like that. But, during low points in the class, he couldn't help but stare over at his pink-haired princess, wincing whenever Chris looked at her. But, it wasn't bad, compared to what XANA might be plotting to do to him at the moment.

Second period passed in a similar way. It was a little boring, almost, the thoughts nagged as he walked along to third period, in an oddly deserted part of the grounds. But, boring was good, compared to, say, being cornered by a specter with only a tower deactivation standing between him and death. Yeah. He knew.

Someone knocked into him, hard. He whirled around to see an adult he only assumed was a teacher stumble past him, in the opposite direction- not walk, but _stumble, _slowly, unsteadily Jeremie stared after him. There was no mistaking that grey hair. "Mr. Hopper-"

He didn't hear him. In fact, just after passing, he gave a sickening lurch, gasped, and staggered towards a pillar. He leaned against it, breathing heavily, sweat visible on his face. Then, just as suddenly, he slipped off, and sank to the ground. Jeremie gasped.

"Oh god- sir, are you okay?" He ran over to him, bent over, and shoved him. No response. "Sir? Mr. Hopper?"

He tried to turn him over. Franz Hopper's mouth lay open, his face expressionless, but he was breathing. His glasses dangled from one ear, and his hair was even more untidy than usual. He obviously appeared to have fainted. Jeremie recoiled a bit, uncomfortable being this near to an unconscious body.

"Ah…ah, darn it." He had to be taken to the infirmary. No question about it. He stood, and tried to pull up Franz with him- but, of course, the man was a lot heavier than he was. He could barely lift him to waist height- at least, not for very long. So, he simply dragged him, as gently as he could, to the nearest classroom.

Class stopped as he entered the doorway, unconscious Franz in tow. He didn't recognize anyone there. Not even the teacher. He didn't know what to do from here. "Uh…hi. I found this guy in the hall-I mean, just outside the door…" He lifted Franz's arm in acknowledgement.

"Oh! Oh dear…" The teacher looked up from her book. "Mr. Hopper…um, okay. Well. Benjamin, go to room 114. Tell Aelita about this." A short, pale boy with short brown hair got up and left the room, after stopping in the doorway to take a long look at Jeremie and Franz. She pointed to three other boys. "Help him carry Mr. Hopper to the infirmary."

"Thank you, ma'am…" The three boys, who all looked the same in that they were large and brutish, got up and lifted Franz together with ease, which made Jeremie feel incredibly useless. Still, he tried to at least contribute by holding the man's head up as the four- well, five, really- stumbled to the infirmary.

Across the lawn…through the administrative wing…and into the infirmary, which looked pretty much the same as always, except, instead of Yolande Perraudin, who might have been only a few years older than the children then, there was a irritable-looking, middle-aged woman sitting in a corner of the room, reading a magazine upside-down. She looked up as they came in.

"Eh? What's wrong?" She did a double take. Her eyes widened, but her tone didn't change.

"Huh…well, this is a change from fake headaches." Rather reluctantly, it seemed, she stood. "Put 'im over there."

With a little bit of difficulty, the boys hauled him onto the bed. Franz shuddered a bit, but did not wake up. The woman walked over to him, and slapped him lightly on the face a few times. He did not react.

"Passed out. Some bruising. Did he fall?"

"Yeah..." Jeremie stared at the floor. The other three boys stared at him, stared at each other, decided silently that they weren't needed anymore, and walked out.

"Okay, hon, I get the picture. I'll take care of 'im." She clapped him on the back, nearly knocking him over. "Looks like all he needs is some rest. He'll be fine."

"Uh, yeah. T..thank you." Jeremie smiled, and then looked at Franz Hopper, in an attempt to at least look at something. Somehow, he felt slightly worried. Franz had worked himself into this, he had a feeling. His breakdown last revision was like a precursor to this. Lack of sleep…? He sighed, and sat on the edge of the bed. He wondered when he'd be asked to leave.

Within a split second of this thought, the infirmary door creaked open. Two green eyes peeked out from behind the wall, and then widened.

"Daddy!" Aelita burst into the room, leaving Chris, who seemed to have followed her the whole way there, in her dust. She skidded to a halt at her inert father's bedside, her face equally as covered in sweat from running, and felt his forehead. Her frantic breathing slowed.

"Wha..what happened to him?" she asked Jeremie, calmly as she could, but with a hint of tension. Somehow, Jeremie couldn't stand to look at her.

"Uh…fainted, I think." He shrugged, and looked to the side.

"Oh." Her eyes trailed off focus. She didn't seem to be looking at anything at all. "Is he…going to be okay?"

"Pretty sure." The nurse was now at the bed, layering cloths on Franz's forehead. "Worst he'll have is a concussion, and that's pretty unlikely. Should go home when he wakes up."

"Uhm, okay." A small smile lit her face for a fleeting second, but then faltered, as she looked back at her father. "I…I'll stay with him. If that's okay."

The nurse opened her mouth, but Chris got there first. "Of course it is, Aelita! You have every right to stay with your dad, y'know? Especially like this, all…fainted…and stuff…aheh…" He cast a meek look at the nurse, who arched an eyebrow at him. "Well, um, if there's anything I can do while I'm here, yanno, keep you company, bring you anything…"

Aelita looked away at him, a bewildered, yet amused look on her face. "Oh…no, it's okay. Don't trouble yourself on my part."

"But I could-"

"Go ahead back to class, Chris. I'll be alright. But…thank you." She smiled warmly. Jeremie could practically see the steam floating up from Chris's head as he blushed purple and backed away towards the door.

"Ah…" Jeremie cast a sideways glance at Chris. "Maybe I really should get back to class too…yanno…I kinda have to…"

"Ah…okay, um…whoever you are."

"Jeremie."

"Jeremie, then. Thank you. For, uh…finding him."

"Uh…yeah. You're welcome." Finding a spasm of courage, he stood up straight and smiled. "I hope he, uh…gets better." Looking at the ground to hide his blush, he quickly left the infirmary.

Once outside, Jeremie could breathe. He leaned against a wall, and scanned the area. Chris was still outside, staring, agoinized, at the infirmary door, mumbling something Jeremie couldn't hear. He noticed Jeremie, stared at him for a long moment, and then resumbed mumbling. Jeremie stared back, his eyes narrowed. "Erm, hi."

"Hi." Chris didn't look away from the door.

"You haven't gone back to class."

"Neither have you."

"Good point."

Silence.

"You like her, don't you?"

Chris glanced sideways at Jeremie, looked back, and did a double take.

"Aelita. You really like her, right?"

"What's it to you?" Chris's voice was antagonistic.

"Oh, nothing." Jeremie shrugged, and laughed a little. "Just noticing. You seem really dedicated to her. It's…kinda interesting." He smiled, a fake smile.

"Augh…dammit…" Chris turned his head away from Jeremie, peeked back, and then swung away again.

"It's stupid, really. Stupid. Ever since I got here…at Kadic, y'know…I don't have many friends, okay? It's all my uncle's fault, y'know…everyone thinks I'm a worthless joke cause I'm related to one."

"You think your own uncle is a worthless joke?"

"No, I don't…I like him a lot, y'know, that's why I came here…but, everyone else does. They thought that. My first month here was hell. But then…I met _her_…" He glanced to the side, a faraway, dreamy look in his eyes. "Maybe she's really nothing more but an ordinary person. Maybe it was because we were kind of the same…you know her father's a teacher. But…she was different to me. She never minded who I was, or what people said about her. She just…allowed herself to be my friend."

"You don't have to think it's that big an achievement for people to like you," Jeremie said, rather hypocritically. Chris didn't notice.

"I…I want to show her how much I'm grateful to her…how much I really care. How I care more than anyone." His voice grew stern, and then softened, saddened. "But I'm afraid she doesn't feel the same way. That I might be ruining our friendship."

"You don't have to get all dramatic about it," Jeremie said, calmly, though his heart was sinking as he spoke. "I mean, yeah, everyone's nervous about stuff like that, but Aelita's just a person, you know? She's a good friend of yours, and she'd probably be pretty honored by half the stuff you've just said." If she wasn't creeped out first, he thought.

"It's never that easy. You've never been in love." He scowled.

"Oh, really?" He smiled, and laughed a bit.

"Huh. Then…you weren't doing it right." There was silence for a minute, then a spasm went off in Chris's brain. "Hey…why did I tell you all this? You- you're not going to tell her, are you?"

"Me? I barely know her name."

"Yes you do. You just said it."

"You get the point." Jeremie turned around and began to walk away, slowly. "Seeya."

"…seeya." He resumed staring at the infirmary door. As Jeremie rounded a corner, he thought he could hear him grunt incontentedly.

As he walked down the hall towards the exit, a clock on the wall chimed twelve- time for lunch. He laughed to himself. Chris, he thought, reminded him slightly of Ulrich and Odd. Ulrich with the lovesickness, and Odd with the application of thick layers of ham, although this was slightly more metaphorical on Chris's side. As if he'd get that dramatic over a girl. Wait. Aelita. Right.

He wasn't twenty feet from the door, just passing one more opening, when he heard more voices, from up ahead. "…It's not that I, well, you know what I mean, Medea…"

Jeremie stopped short of the opening and leaned over, mildly curious. It was the small reception area in the administrative building, an area just outside the door. Medea Delmas was sitting in a small, IKEA-esque chair, staring politely at her standing husband, who was clearly trying to tell her something. Sissi, nearly oblivious to her parents, played with a doll in a nearby chair. She was banging its head on a small table.

Jean-Pierre paused in his conversation, wiped his forehead, and began again. "What I'm trying to say is…well, this school has always had certain standards, and…well…"

"I don't meet the standards because I'm too immature," Medea interrupted. She kept a straight face, crossing her legs.

"No, no, of course not," he stammered hurriedly. "You are a very good teacher, and, of course, I love you…" His voice trailed, and then he caught himself. "But there is a certain level of respect that should be demanded of someone of your caliber…to keep students in their place. And you…you're not demanding that level of respect. For example…" He paused. "Why would you ever insist that the students refer to you by your first name? It's-it's-"

"Unprofessional?"

"Y-yes, unprofessional." It appeared as though he had thought of that, but had kept quiet for her sake.

"Well, I like the kids, y'know. They're friends of mine." She smiled. "Besides, doesn't Jim-"

Jean-Pierre's face grew livid. "Medea. Never, ever compare yourself to that mindless fool. You're greater than he'll ever be."

"Putting others down for my sake? Damn, you're in love." She laughed. Jean-Pierre stared at the floor. "But really, Jeannie, it's called _constructive criticism_. You dish it out like crazy to everyone else. I shouldn't be an exception." She shrugged.

There was silence for a while. Sissi sang a nonsensical song to herself as she swung her legs.

"Well, yes, yes." Jean-Pierre took a few deep breaths. "I guess what I'm really trying to say is that around the students, you should be acting more like a teacher, and less like a child."

"Ya see? That's all you had to say. Thanks, boss!" She jumped up, kissed him on the cheek, and turned towards her daughter. "C'mon, Sissi, wanna have lunch?"

"Ice cream?" She jumped off her seat, a wide smile on her face, and skipped towards her mother.

"No, no," Medea said, trying to hold down a laugh. "Ice cream isn't lunch." She took the small girl's hand, waved to her husband, and exited the room. Quickly, Jeremie stood up straight, and pretended to be a normal student, walking by. Medea didn't even notice him.

Neither did Ms. Hertz. She was walking into the building, in the opposite direction. As she passed Medea, Medea held her hand out. She slapped it. Medea mumbled something like, "Act cute, and they'll do whatever you say…" and exited the building.

The grey-haired woman crossed the opening, turned her head in Jean-Pierre's general direction, and walked towards him. Again mildly curious, Jeremie leaned in, this time on the other side.

Ms. Hertz was standing in front of Jean-Pierre as he stared out the window, not having noticed she was there. She made an exasperated sigh. "If she's that much of a problem, then maybe you should just fire her," she said, rather sternly.

Jean-Pierre jumped, turned around, and gasped. "N-no! I, mean, ah…" He took a minute to compose himself. "Hello, Suzanne. Of course I'm not going to fire her. She…she's got tenure."

"And she's your wife," she retorted, laughing. "But, I can see where this conversation is going to go. Nowhere." Her voice grew serious. She paced around the room. "I'm sure you've received word about Franz's little fainting spell."

"Yes." Jean-Pierre's face darkened considerably. Now, he looked a bit more like the stern principal Jeremie knew, except, of course, that his hair wasn't grey. "And his daughter?"

"She knows." Ms. Hertz turned her head towards Jean-Pierre. "You certainly seem to have something on your mind."

"That's the understatement of the century," he replied, quietly. "You know I don't quite trust Franz Hopper's sanity, Suzanne. He's twice as brilliant as I am, and a much better teacher- though not quite as handsome-" Ms. Hertz rolled her eyes- "And he and I have been friends for a very, very long time. But ever since his wife, er, died, he's become less and less like himself. More suspicious." He paced, a bit faster than Ms. Hertz. "I have this odd feeling that he's up to something, something big…but what?"

"Right now, he isn't up at all. You're being a bit too paranoid."

"Yes, yes. Maybe I am." He made to walk away.

"Oh, Jean-Pierre," Ms. Hertz said suddenly, and he turned around. A sly smile crossed her face. "Say Medea were to die. Say, tomorrow. Would you go insane like him?"

Jean-Pierre stared at her incredulously. "I'd rather die."

"Really." She smiled wider, and turned on her heels to leave the room. The principal followed her, close behind. Jeremie sensed that the conversation was over. Before either of them could see him, He sped out the door, towards lunch, Jean-Pierre's final words rattling in his head.

* * *

Lunch was uneventful as usual. Jeremie sat at the edge of Chris and Aelita's table, the main reason for this being that Chris wouldn't let him get any closer to Aelita.

_I'd rather die. I'd rather die._

Ms. Hertz subbed Franz Hopper's science class. She was a good teacher, even now as a mere secretary, and much, much less creepy than Mr. Hopper. Jeremie might have actually learned something he didn't know, if he hadn't been so busy trying to avoid Chris's glare.

_I'd rather die. I'd rather die._

Was Chris a psychopath or something?

_I'd rather die._

No. Perhaps Aelita had just turned him into one.

The day passed all too quickly, and Jeremie found himself outside the school buildings once again, alone with no aim. He looked up at the trees above him, swaying for what was perhaps the ten thousandth time since the day had begun. And who knew how many more times before the day would end. He sighed, still looking up, and took a step towards the gate.

"Uhm, ah…Jeremie!"

Jeremie turned around, and found himself face to face with a tuft of pink hair- Aelita, tagged close as always by Chris, who was looking at Jeremie with the revulsion which one might use to look at a live bomb. Aelita was a bit blank, as usual, but seemed slightly more upbeat than most of the time.

"I…I wanted to thank you again for helping my dad," she began. "I'm sure he's very grateful. If he has any idea who you are…you were only here for today, right?"

"Yeah, right," Jeremie answered. "How's he doing?"

"Okay," Aelita said. "He woke up about an hour ago, and the nurse sent him home for the day. He'll be fine to teach tomorrow."

"Yep. Thanks. So, uh, have a nice life, _bye._" Chris took Aelita's shoulder, and gently turned her around. Jeremie got the hint. A bit forlornly, he walked away, very slowly. Even as he did so, Chris and Aelita continued talking.

"You already thanked him, why'd you have to go and do it again?"

"Because it's the polite thing to do."

"You really are sheltered. Ah…" There was a pause. "F-forgive me, Aelita, I didn't really mean to say that…"

"I went deaf for about five seconds and had no idea what you just said." Smooth. "Ah…I suppose I should go and see how Daddy's doing…but he probably doesn't want to be bothered…"

"Yeah, he's been out the whole day, he probably conked again. Besides, the day's still young! Anything you wanna do? Anything?" Chris seemed desprate to spend any time at all with Aelita.

"Well…we could always go and see Elisabeth." Her tone brightened considerably.

"Are you sure? I mean, uh, okay. Sounds cool."

"Oh yeah!"

As Jeremie heard this, a thought struck him. Maybe, perhaps, he could delay his boredom for just a little while. He turned around, and ran back a few steps. "Uh-" Too quiet. He raised his voice. "Uh- HEY!"

Both had their backs to Jeremie. Chris seemed determined to ignore him, but Aelita turned around, curious. "Hm?"

"Y-you were going to the Delmas' house, right?"

"Uhm…yes…" She nodded her head a few times.

"Well, um…can I come?" His desperation showed clearly in his voice. "I mean, my parents aren't coming to get me for a while, and I'm just going to have to stand here, and, uh…"

Aelita stared at him, a bit bewildered. "Uh…okay, I guess. Chris?"

"Weh?" He took one look at Jeremie, and though his eyes narrowed, his tone remained calm. "Eh, sure. He'll just be gone soon anyway…" That last sentence was said under his breath.

"Okay! Ahm…thank you. Really."

"You're welcome…but it's really no big deal." Her face was blank.

The Delmas' house, the green one on campus, was only just across from where the three of them had stood. It wasn't a long walk, though a silent one, as Jeremie had no idea what to say, Aelita was too focused on the house, and Chris was formulating seventy-two ways to somehow shake Jeremie off. Before they knew it, they were there. The door was slightly open- a welcome sign. They went inside.

The inside of the house was just as normal as the outside. The older architechture of the house contrasted with the more modern furniture in an unusual, attractive way. As Jeremie stood at the door, dumbfounded, and Chris looked across at him suspiciously, Aelita skipped down the hallway, calling out. "Oy! Medea?"

"Oh, hi, Aelita! C'mon in." The response was far away, but definitely Medea.

"Chris and this other guy are here too!" Jeremie rolled his eyes, trying not to make it obvious.

"More people from the crazy parade? Awesome!"

Aelita ran out of sight. Jeremie guessed he should follow her. A trip down a small hallway led to a kitchen, a warm-looking one, with lots of wood. Medea Delmas stood at a small counter jutting out of the wall, grading what looked like English papers. The toddler Sissi sat on the same counter, legs dangling off the edge, calling off "X!" whenever Medea wrote one. This was, needless to say, very often.

Sissi, looking cavity-inducingly cute as ever, looked up at Aelita, and smiled widely. "Leeda!"

"Yep!" Aelita ran over to the little girl, and gave her an enthusiastic hug. "I'm back!"

"Ice cream?"

"Uh, no, I don't have any ice cream…" Aelita didn't look confused, just happier than ever.

Medea turned her head, now noticing Chris and Jeremie. "She has a thing about ice cream, don't worry about that." She laughed. "Well, come in. We don't bite. Well…not me, anyway," she said, gesturing towards some poor kid's English test, with a small bite mark in it, made by a very small mouth.

"Well, uh, okay." Jeremie barely stepped in the door. Shyly, he leaned against the counter, eyes on the floor. In contrast, Chris bounded right over to Aelita and Sissi, making embarrassing squeaky noises for the smaller girl.

Jeremie occasionally looked up at them, but otherwise kept silent for a while. Medea had her back to him, grading papers more quickly now that Sissi was occupied. Finally, she looked up, and noticed Jeremie. She cocked an eyebrow.

"What are you still doing here?"

"I…I dunno." He shrugged nonchalantly.

"You're the shadow kid, right? Jeremie?"

"Mm."

"Not much of a talker," she said, almost to herself. "So, y'like Kadic at all?"

"Y-yeah…it's nice."

"'Nice' is an evil word. It barely means anything and is never a good description." She sighed.

"Ahm…" Jeremie thought for a minute. "The classes are kinda interesting, I guess…and the people are pretty…uh…"

"Nice? Cheheh. Well, glad you think so. You certainly picked an exciting day to come." She laughed to herself.

"You heard about Franz Hopper?"

"Well, duh. He's a coworker." Medea wasn't looking at him, but he could almost tell that she was rolling her eyes. "We're all worried about him, really…we have been, for a very long time." Her voice trailed, a faraway quality to it.

"You probably would. He does act…kinda weird-" He caught himself. He was supposed only to have seen Franz unconscious- there was no way he could have known about his actions.

Thankfully, Medea didn't notice. "Wierdness? Haha, no. If anything, he's being more human than half the people in this crazy place."

"How?"

Medea turned her head and looked at the ceiling. Her hand dropped, her pen slipped. Her eyes glazed over.

"He acts on passion. Passion for others. A father for a daughter, a husband for a wife…a schoolboy for that funny little girl that sits next to him…" She twitched her hand in Chris's general direction. Chris, at the moment, was wagging Sissi's tiny pigtails up and down, looking very distracted. "And, of course, vice versa. It's our passions that make us humans. Our care that binds us together. It may seem silly, but it's really helped us to survive. It's something we've evolved to do."

Now her face grew more serious, less focused. "And those that don't care…those are the ones that we have to watch out for. The dangerous ones. The real psychopaths. The ones that kill to feel alive. That is no life."

Jeremie's eyes widened. "Wow. That's…real deep. But it does kinda make sense."

Medea swiveled her head around, bug eyed. "Oh…you're still here? Hm." She smiled, a little too widely.

"Ah…heh. Well, I guess I'll go and, uh, play with Elizabeth." Jeremie smiled, widely, and began stepping away.

"Call her Sissi. It's cuter." Medea had gone back to her work. Jeremie, having nothing else to do, bent down by Chris and Aelita, who were playing with Sissi. That is, Aelita was playing with her, and Chris was interrupting every once in a while with 'yeah'. It made sense. Not that any human male would be seen alive playing with Barbies.

Chris was less than thrilled at the addition, but Aelita didn't seem to mind. It was doubtful she even noticed that Jeremie was there- she was so dedicated to the little girl. Seeing the two together, Jeremie could hardly believe that in eleven years, this sweet, cute, green-eyed little girl would be an ugly, preppy, snobbish thing who would insult Aelita almost as she drew breath- the girl she was now hugging and whacking lightly with a Ken doll.

Soon enough, Sissi noticed Jeremie. Her head swiveled slowly, away from Aelita and the Barbies. And then the rest of her. Chris backed away a little, but Jeremie stayed put. Sissi stared at him for a moment, and then her face lit up. "Hi!"

"Uh, hi there." He smiled, warmly. "What's your name?"

Her little face scrunched up in concentration. "Zee…za…biff…Sissi!" She laughed hysterically. Jeremie chuckled. Aelita nearly fainted. Chris arched an eyebrow.

"Well, yes, that's a very nice name!" He couldn't believe what he was saying. "A nice name for a nice girl. One wonders how she became a moose," he muttered under his breath.

Sissi gasped. "Moose?" She thought for a minute- and then held her hands up to her head, like a moose's antlers. "Moose in Ka-Bik!"

"Ka…bik?"

"Québec." Medea had finished, and somehow gotten herself into the corner. She picked Sissi up and swung her around. "That's where the moose are, right, Sissi? Québec! That's where we're going this summer, remember? It's nice and cool there."

"Ice cream?"

"Yes, I think they do have ice cream in Québec. Maybe then we'll let you have some. Not before. Just then." She swung Sissi around again, laughing- and then looked out the window. "Oh! Principal!" She swiveled her head. "You all better scoot. Having a bunch of students in the house would be pretty hard to explain…and probably call for more stammering."

"Wha?"

"Goodbye!" Putting Sissi down, she pushed them all out a back door, and shut it. The three of them were now alone. Awkward silence.

"Uh…hi." Chris looked away.

"Hi." Jeremie looked at the sky. It wasn't very interesting, and he didn't feel like looking at the other two. "Well…bye."

"Bye." Aelita started walking in the other direction. Chris followed her. Jeremie kept looking at the sky. He didn't know what he was looking for. A time machine? Maybe. Somehow, going home hadn't seemed too important today.

There was a buzz at the back of Jeremie's ear, a buzz that split the air. And then…Chris and Aelita just stopped. They were all staring at the sky.

A white light seared the air, swallowing the area. He knew what it was. He'd seen it four times in the technical span of twelve hours, and millions of times before. What he couldn't comprehend…was how it had come so early in the day.

Chris's jaw dropped, and he pointed up at it. "What the heck is that?" Aelita's pupils dilated, and she looked across, lips vibrating, muttering something too low to hear. Jeremie just stared. He didn't trust himself to speak. Neither did he have the time to do as such, as the campus, the house, and the three of them were enveloped.

* * *

Wow. Reading this over, it's like the story should have a moral or something…that was not meant to happen. I guess Fred Gallagher was right- story writing really can take a life of its own.

Well, hope you enjoyed this very organic chapter. Stay tuned for the next, which really hasn't come out of the pod yet. Okay, I'm done with plant metaphors.

- Carth


	12. Day Six: Forever Dawn

Hi, everyone! Hope I didn't take really long. Really, really hope.

But, I do have two bits of bad news- and in the chapter before the fun starts. Next month is- da da da duuumm- NaNoWriMo! I'm planning to do this, and will probably spend a lot of my spare time writing it. I'll defnitely try and find time for RTTP- it just gets too good after this- but just be aware of that. Kay? Kay. Second bit is that this story may, as it was fated, become noncanon next Saturday, when "Médusée" (or "Wrong Exposure") airs in France, an episode where Jean-Pierre will be shown a picture of Franz Hopper, according to spoilers. Aside from Chris's age (he was actually about eight in 1994), we've been doing pretty well so far. Ah well. I'm still finishing it no matter what.

Still, now, I give you Chapter 12. Feast your eyes on its doom.

Oh, and stay tuned after the chapter for a leetle surprise…

* * *

**Chapter 12  
**Day Six: Forever Dawn

Jeremie was still in shock mode when he woke up again. The first thing he noticed this time was not the abrupt snap back to reality, but the sweat that coated his face, and his hyperventilating.

He didn't know why he was in panic. Okay, so Franz had reversed time…a little earlier than usual. Explainable. He was sick. He probably didn't want to work. But then, why didn't he just take the afternoon off and sleep or something? It didn't make sense.

_Probably thought it'd go away, _he finally reasoned. _But wouldn't it just happen again? Is health affected by returns to the past? Ah…_

He was too excited to sit anymore. He leaped up, fell over, got up again, laptop bag chafing at his shoulders, and ran across the strip of land, in the gate, and onto the campus. He knew it well enough, he didn't have to look where he was going. All he had to do was reach the classroom, maybe then he could calm-

_Flump._

Jeremie bumped into something brown, squishy- and definitely human. Stifling a squeak, he bounced back, brushing himself off. "Sorry, sir-"

He stopped dead mid-sentence. Franz Hopper was looking down at him, evidently the person he had just bumped into. He looked a lot healthier than he had the previous revision- perhaps the return to the past had helped. Still, his health made him look sharp, and he was looking down at Jeremie, an eyebrow cocked.

They stood in silence for a long time. Finally, slowly, Franz spoke.

"It is a bit unusual to see a child out on the campus at this hour." His eyes narrowed. "Especially one that I…have never seen."

The sweat on Jeremie's face ran cold. Before he knew it, he was babbling. "Uh, uh, sorry, sorry, I'm-I'm just a shadow student, y'know, guess I got the time kinda wrong, but, yanno, better earlier than later, right? Right? Hahaha…" He froze in a hopeful smile. Franz's eyebrow remained arched.

"…I see. Well, welcome to Kadic." Without another word, he pushed by Jeremie and continued on. Maybe it was only the wind that seemed to carry a small whisper after him… "He's good."

Jeremie stared after him for a long, long time.

Then, suddenly, his consciousness returned. Class. Trying to put Franz out of his mind for the moment (rather hard, once you've seen those creepy eyes of his), he whirled around, and kept running.

BANG. Wooden pole. He wonder whether he'd prefer this to Franz Hopper.

* * *

Jeremie couldn't tell why he couldn't concentrate that morning.

Mostly, it was because he couldn't concentrate long enough to figure out why. He only remembered to make his existence a reality three minutes before the first bell rang. When the classroom had filled, Medea had to call on him five times (and poke him in the head about seven times) to get his attention in order to learn his name. After this small display, several children nearby tried to poke him, but they got no reaction. He just kept staring into space.

Maybe the shellshock that he might never go home finally got to him. Maybe his run into the pole had given him a concussion. Maybe he was just going a little crazy. Who knew. Definitely not him. He lasted through two classes like this.

"Hey! Hey!"

Jeremie looked up, a little sleepily. A pink blur was standing over him, which suddenly resolved itself into Aelita. She was staring at him with a puzzled look, almost mirroring Franz's. "Uh, class is over."

He blinked a few times, and nodded, in the other direction. Aelita just shrugged, and walked off. It was a few seconds before Jeremie realized she had even been there. Mumbling incoherently, he gathered his things and started out the door. As he walked out, a familiar object was caught in his peripheral vision- an object that was staring right at him.

Jeremie whirled in Franz Hopper's direction, eyes locked in what he hoped was a killer stare- but to be honest, he looked more worried than threatening. "Don't you have a class to teach?"

"Maybe." He stared at Jeremie for all of ten seconds, and then made a show of intense interest in a small tree nearby. Jeremie was all too happy for his distraction- he began to walk, hopefully discreetly, in the other direction. He was now more confused than ever. Why would this loony old man…

"How long have you been here?"

"Just today." Jeremie turned his head, placing a look of cool disinterest, even if his nerves were shrieking shriller than Ulrich's singing in the shower. (The fact that he only ever sang 80's rock ballads made it even worse. But that's a story for another day.) Franz Hopper had not moved, but even from a distance, he looked quite a bit more smug. They were clearly trying to out-cool each other, and it was unclear who was winning. "Isn't that right?"

"Really," Franz replied. He didn't seem to believe it. "Ah." Then, to Jeremie's surprise, he walked right up to him. He was a lot taller than he remembered.

"You're quite a bit more intelligent than you let on." His eyes narrowed. "And a bit more informed, as well."

"Ah-" His throat froze up. Franz laughed a little, and walked on, humming a small tune to himself. Jeremie, having nothing else to do, stared after him. He was becoming more confused by the second.

"_Ah vous dirai-je, maman…__"_

* * *

Jeremie's next two classes were spent in slightly more awareness, but quite a bit more deep thought.

Why, he wondered, was Franz following him? But, as far as Jeremie knew, he had hardly even interacted with the man for all his time here. And still, the man seemed to think of him as a sort of 'threat'. Why? What had he ever done to Franz, besides exist?

Everyone, everyone in this bubble of time, acted exactly the same in each and every revision. Every one, except Franz, and himself. Perhaps that was the suspicion. That he had taken a bit too much advantage of the fact that he was alone in the effect of the timestream's meddlings.

Ring. Lunch. Jeremie tried to hurry to the cafeteria, keeping his eyes perpetually downcast, trying not to catch anyone's eye. Maybe if he didn't look like a threat, Franz would leave him alone. Maybe...

"Keep your eyes up. You might run into something."

He gasped, a little too loudly, and did look up, to see Franz standing right in front of him. He was laughing quietly to himself as he watched the small boy struggle mentally.

"You-" He thought for a minute. "You know it's a crime to follow people around like this."

"I only follow people if there is a significant reason to do as such." He made a small nod.

"Still, I uh- I could report you to the principal- I could- report-"

"Oh, really? That's a problem to you?" He turned his back to Jeremie, staying silent for an agonizing moment.

"You know, I never much liked that girl either. Considering the things she's done in her life. However, I did not expect to see her in the infirmary covered in blood…especially when it wasn't her purpose." A smirk crossed his unexpressive face. "You're not as innocent as you appear, Jeremie."

Jeremie could do nothing but mouthe soundlessly. He had completely blocked all memory of that revision from his head- all fixed, never happened, and inexistent. Mostly because of what he had done to that girl, but somewhat because of what that girl had been about to do- and what Chris had almost done.

"There's-there's no way- you could have-"

"True. And yet, here we are." He threw his hands into the air. His eyebrow motions suggested that he was rolling his eyes.

"Heh. Heh heh." Jeremie's face hardened into a sneer. "You don't seem too innocent yourself."

"You're absolutely correct." Rather absentmindedly, Franz began walking away again, still talking as he walked. "Why are you here?"

Jeremie was frozen for a split second before running off after him, one of Franz's steps being three of his. He tried to make up a story on the fly. "Because…well…I- I just am, you know? Things take people places, and stuff, and I'm just here. I'm not going to hurt you or anything, you know, I'm just a kid, so…"

Franz stopped. Jeremie skidded to a halt behind him, to prevent running into him again. He waited for a response from the old man, but he made none. Not even a indiscreet grunt.

"Uh…" Jeremie decided to take another path in the conversation. "Uh, I, uh, met your daughter. Aelita."

Franz slowly turned his head in Jeremie's direction, pivoted away, and did a double take. He arched an eyebrow.

"Ah, uh…she's…a really nice person. Okay, so maybe the pink hair is a little weird, but it's kind of, well, an expression of individuality, you know?" He knew he was babbling. He couldn't help it.

"Ah…really," he replied. His face didn't change. "I should ask her about that." This seemed satisfactory for him. He began to walk away again.

Somehow, Jeremie didn't think that his departure would bode well. He began running again. "Uh…uh, HEY!"

Franz stopped again. Jeremie was getting a little tired of starting and stopping. He opened his mouth, but even after stopping him, found that he had nothing to say.

The old man noticed this, and laughed, just a little. "What?" He shrugged, and looked in another direction, towards a tree. "Tell me, Jeremie, do you think I'm crazy?"

Jeremie was still speechless. He was moving his mouth, making wild accusations that he couldn't seem to say. All that came out was one, rather retarded "Gaaaaaugh." Franz took a few deep breaths- this was a clear sign that he was trying very, very hard not to laugh.

"You're absolutely correct. I'm a lunatic. And you're a lunatic, too. Everyone on this whole damn earth is a lunatic. That is why we are sane, you see. Understand?" He didn't wait for an answer. "I'm sure you do. Well, you know why? We're insane because we're humans. We have logic, that's our gift, but we also have things that can't be explained. Like our emotions. Logically, they're clues from the days we walked on all fours, to help us see the difference between good and bad. But in other ways…

Take love, you see. We all know what it is, but we can never define it. Love can make us all do very insane things. We can sacrifice ourselves. Or someone else. Or even the entire world." Jeremie's breath caught in his throat for a moment. Franz didn't notice, and babbled on.

"None of those things are logical, little boy. And yet…they just keep on happening. You gotta believe em to survive. Not everything in life is logic." He smiled, evilly, maniacally. His fists shook.

Jeremie suddenly figured out what to say. And this time, he could easily out-cool Franz. He took a deep breath, and shrugged. "I know this a bit too well, old man." He tried to give an evil eye, which was a bit easier for him, because his glasses were actually transparent. "Heh. You seem just a bit worked up. Maybe you should go, lie down for a couple days…"

"N-n-no! No!" Franz's look of terror was only fleeting- and then he composed himself. He laughed some more- a bit more of a manic habit now than an actual expression of an appreciation of humor. "Ah…no. It's really…not worth it." His glasses slid down his face. Jeremie got only a second's glimpse of a pair of sad, weary green eyes before he pushed them back up.

Before anything else could be philosophically debated, a sudden awareness of time hit Jeremie, as it often does in the strangest of situations. "Uh, I, uh, have to go to lunch," he interrupted, smiling wanly.

"'Kay." Franz shrugged. "But, I advise you to hurry."

No crap. Jeremie booked it out of there as soon as he could. He ran over to the lunchroom, which, by odd coincidence, was only a few yards away- and then, the bell rang. Students streamed out of the small trailer that held the sacred lunch, nearly knocking him over. Lunch was obviously over.

"Oh, and I forgot to tell you. Lunch is over." Franz's small laughter was somehow audible over all the shouts of the Kadic students. Jeremie groaned, hoping he could hear as well, and stomped across the campus, towards his next class.

Which he just realized was Science.

Huh.

* * *

Maybe Science that day was bad. Maybe it wasn't. Franz was calling on him quite a lot. Okay, a bit more than quite a lot. Try, every single little question. And maybe those strange little smirks he was throwing Jeremie, maybe those weren't intentional. Or, even better, maybe the old man really had gone to the dogs long, long ago. Either way, Jeremie was banging his head on the table quite a bit that hour. Franz, however, seemed to be having fun- he was a bit more chipper, and even said goodbye to the students once the class ended. Many of the kids were very confused.

The rest of the afternoon was really fairly normal, aside from the fact that now, everyone was staring at him. He tried his best to ignore it. It worked, mostly- the afternoon passed extremely quickly, and before he knew it, he was walking out of the last class. The gate was only about twenty yards away…if he hurried, he could make a break for it-

"Going so soon?"

Jeremie had only run about half a foot when he stopped dead in his tracks. Franz Hopper was behind him again, by some crazy feat of physics. He turned towards Franz and stared at him incredulously.

"Look, whatever you say about that psychological stuff, you're still a pretty sick mind doing pretty sick things." He groaned, more for effect than anything.

"And, what's it to you?" he replied, with a hint of mocking.

"Uh…" For a moment, Jeremie toyed with the idea of telling Franz he was from the future, all about his struggles with XANA- but he didn't know what frame of mind Franz was in, or how he would take the news at this point. He ultimately decided against it. "Nothing. Nothing at all."

That little laugh again. "Good boy. I don't know what you think you have to do with things that are my business…and my business only." His voice grew stern, and then, just as quickly, became very, very sad. "But, I know…it is very late. And I am very tired. Perhaps I should take your advice. Perhaps…I should go to bed, for awhile." He sighed, almost in defeat.

Jeremie was confused for a split second- and then he understood the metaphor. His head reeled again- between discouraging it, and not changing anything, or recommending it- and potentially preventing the supercomputer's completion. No XANA, no supercomputer…no Aelita. No friends.

"Well…maybe not. Maybe you should stay up a little longer. Besides, you might need time to-" He caught himself before he could say 'fix that Lyoko wall-off thingy you talked about.' Because, he reminded himself, he wasn't supposed to know about that.

Franz's eyes narrowed, and Jeremie wondered if he saw through it. "Who knows. Perhaps." He turned his back on Jeremie. "Good day."

Jeremie let him leave. He was tired of talking to him anyway. As he left, he breathed a sigh of relief. No more crazy person. He made a break for the gate before Franz could change his mind-

"Ah…"

Jeremie stopped, about a yard later. Aelita was there, under a small linden tree two yards away, staring right at him. She looked a bit afraid, as though he were a wild animal that might attack. Then, slowly, her eyes trailed off, in another direction- and then snapped back to him.

"Uh…" His face grew hot, and he looked at the ground. "H-hello, uh, Aelita…uh, beautiful day, isn't it?"

Aelita ignored him. "What was my father saying to you?"

He blushed even deeper. "Uh…nothing, nothing, I don't even know, y'know? I mean, the guy's absolutely bananas, I mean, no offense to you cause he's your dad, right? Am I right? I mean, you're not bonkers, well, I don't know, since I've never talked to you in my life…" He laughed hysterically, not realizing he was waving his hand in the air. Aelita raised an eyebrow.

"Huh. Very well. Goodbye." Without waiting for an answer, she walked away. Jeremie looked after her. There was something different about her, but he couldn't figure out precisely what. Maybe it was the way that her head hung low over her chest, or how she was clutching her arm, moving her fingers nervously. Had he done something to upset her? He sighed, and continued walking, some depression beginning to creep up on him.

Someone nudged him hard in the ribs. This woke him up. Turning sharply, he saw Chris shuffle past him. He was also noticeably disturbed, but a bit more dramatically. His face was buried in his hair, and he was sniffling into his arm. He weaved back and forth, completely lost in himself. Jeremie stared after him, wide-eyed. Why…?

"Aelita…"

It was only a mumble, but it solved the puzzle for Jeremie. He'd bet one seventy-fourth of his soul that there were a group of girls sitting somewhere now, laughing over the perfect destruction of someone's life. The girls. The confession.

"_You know, I never much liked that girl either. Considering the things she's done in her life."_

Dammit. Jeremie didn't feel like walking anymore. Forlorly, he looked up. The sky was a bit too blue today…

A buzz cut across his hearing, and a bubble of light spread out over the horizon. A time revision bubble. So. He looked up at it, and smiled at it, like it was an old friend. And, in a way, it was.

* * *

Woo! Did all that psychological stuff make your brain hurt? It made my brain hurt too. Well, to remedy your brain hurting-ness, I will make it numb with a special surprise- your daily recommended dose of every fanfiction reader's favorite little guilty indulgence, that is, sugary, sweet, cavity-inducing fluff! I hope you all like it.

And now, Carthy Productions brings thou-

* * *

**Side Story  
**At The Park

It was a beautiful day at Forrest Elementary Park.

It was a very nice park. It had swings, slides, monkey bars, see-saws, everything. And, on a beautiful day like this, it was swamped with children, none of which were above the age of five. This was mostly because not only were they not in school, their exhausted parents didn't feel like keeping them inside on such a nice day. Especially since they'd be bouncing off the walls in any other case.

In fact, there was only one parent who wasn't sitting on a nearby bench, drinking coffee and debating about the meaning of life.

"WHEEEEEEE!!"

Medea slid to the bottom of the long, curly slide, laughing, genuinely amused. Just a second later, there was a soft _flump –_ her daughter, Sissi, had landed on her. This drove Medea off the edge- she collapsed into the wood chips, squealing in hysterics. Eager to copy her mother, Sissi laughed as well, and rolled off her mother's back.

"Haha…ha…" Medea stood, brushing the chips off herself. "Man, I haven't done that in ages. Wanna do it again, Sissi?"

Sissi stared at her for a moment, her little brain trying to find something to focus on. She found it. "Daddy! Daddy!" She pointed behind Medea, supposedly at her father, who was, like most, swallowed in mudanity, on a nearby bench, drinking coffee and all that.

"Yes, it's Daddy, isn't it?" Keeping her smile, she turned to her husband. "HIIII DADDY!"

It was unclear what Jean-Pierre Delmas thought of this. For one thing, he was stifling a laugh. For another, he had just dropped his coffee cup, and didn't notice that the spilled coffee was staining his shoes.

Medea cocked an eyebrow at him. "I guess that means hi. Well, how about that slide, eh?"

She turned around. The place where Sissi stood was now vacant- she was wandering off in the general direction of the swings. Her eyebrow unarched, and she sighed.

"Huh. No more slide. Ah well. Time to see what the calvary's up to." She walked, nonchalantly, over to the benches. Nearby adults stared at her, including her own husband.

The man in question was looking up at her, smiling, but slightly bewildered-looking. "I, erm…saved you some coffee." Jean-Pierre handed his wife the other cup, which sat safely on the bench.

"Mm," she replied. Sipping the coffee, she sat next to him, leaning on his shoulder. This was more for the satisfaction of seeing him blush than anything else.

"Aa-ah, yes." Jean-Pierre cleared his throat. "You know…someday, Elisabeth won't want you to play with her like that anymore…"

"True. But for now, Jeannie, she's _two years old._" She giggled. "Besides, _you_ never seemed to be bothered when I played with you."

"Shut up." He made a show of pouting at her. "Ah…you're, well, endearing, Medea. Different. Able to let go of your inhibitions. That's what makes you, well…beautiful."

"You've told me that twenty-eight times, Jeannie-"

"And I mean it every time." He smiled at her, a very genuine smile.

"Well, try rewording it every once in a while." She gave a small 'hm'. "Swings are weird."

"Why?"

"Cause they are. Yanno, they move by the momentum of swingin' legs?" She moved her finger in a circle. "How does that work? And what if it goes too far, ne? Would the little kid just go right over the-"

"Huh. Maybe." Jean-Pierre's smile remained, soft and warm- he was enjoying this a lot more than he let on. "What do you think?"

"Well…" The conversation sort of went out on a tangent from there.

The swings themselves showed no signs of going over the top, or moving at all. It was a slow day at that end of the park. But one girl crouched, just behind the seesaw, to peek at something that, for the moment, intrigued her completely. A boy was sitting on a swing- not swinging, just sitting, and staring off into space. His mousy brown hair was clipped short, and his large, equally brown eyes had just the slightest touch of sadness to them. He wore a simple t-shirt and shorts, which somehow hinted at more high-end origins.

She knew what she was going to do about this. Without a moment's thought, she jumped up from her hiding place and ran over to the swings, skidding to a stop in front of the boy. He arched an eyebrow.

A wide smile spread across the girl's face. "Hi! My name is Sissi. Will you be my boyfriend?"

"No."

It was clear her world had just been shattered. Tears welled up in her tiny eyes, and she ran from the boy, screaming as much as she could. The boy didn't react.

"MOMMMMMYYY! DAAAAAAAADDY!" She skidded to a stop in front of the bench where Jean-Pierre and Medea sat, not even bothering to hide her tears. Upon hearing her, both leapt up, looks of fear on both of their faces.

She pointed a finger towards the swings. "He- he won't be my boyfriend!" Sissi collapsed on the sidewalk, weeping hysterically. Medea and Jean-Pierre exchanged ridiculous looks. Finally, Medea bent down to her daughter, patting her on the head.

"Awww, don't worry, Sissi-pie. Maybe he just isn't interested in you yet. Who knows, maybe he could take you to senior prom someday." She turned her head to her husband for a moment, and mouthed something like "not in a million years". This was a bit too much for Jean-Pierre- he collapsed on the bench, shaking in silent laughter.

"Either way, just go and have fun. Who knows, we might get you a treat later."

Sissi's eyes lit up immediately. "Ice cream?"

"Uh, sure thing." She laughed a little, and then clapped her on the shoulder. "Get out of here!"

Sissi laughed, and skipped back off to the playground, as though her little crying spell had never happened. Medea stood back up, stretched her arms, and swung around to face the swingsets. Sissi had gone back over to the small boy, and was kicking his swing. He seemed to elicit no response.

"Heh heh heh. Idiots." She swung around, and skipped back to the bench, sitting aside her husband. Jean-Pierre was still leaning over one of the rails, fighting back more laughter.

"Now, where were-" She stopped dead mid-sentence. A small, tinny sound was gathering in her ear. She swatted at it, hoping she was only being plagued by a bee or something- and then she looked up.

An enormous, white bubble of light was looming over the horizon. It grew rapidly, swallowing the entire city behind the park. Oddly enough, nobody else seemed to notice it. It was emitting the tinny sound, splitting the sound layer. Her eyes widened, and her jaw dropped.

"THE HELL?" That was all she got out before her thought processes stopped. The bubble hit her full in the face. A momentary floating, a feeling as though she was being kicked in the head-

And then, it was gone. Not just gone, but never there.

And she woke up.

* * *

No guesses who that little kid was. No guesses at all.

Hope you all liked it. I can't wait to write the next chapter...DUN DUN DUN DUN...

-Carth


	13. Day Seven: The Emancipation

…wow. First story-resembling thingy in, like, two years, and it gets 100 reviews. 107. Wowza. Wowza wowza wowza. Thanks everyone I LOVES YOU. I'm pretty much surprised how deep and psychological the story got, and that you like it that way. I'm sorry if some of you can't make sense of it. (The only thing I really planned to make unique was the grammar skillz.) I just threw it in to keep you guys happy while I stalled time. Of course, if you liked that and then you hate what's next, I'm a bit screwed, ne? Well, thanks. A lot.

And thanks to Andrew for telling me about that paradox! Well, regardless of what Jeremie had said, Franz would have kept going anyway. But thanks, thanks a lot…you just helped me patch up a big plot hole. Bigger than you know.

I'd also like to welcome someone to the RTTP project- Stonecreek, who does not have an account here, at least to the most of my knowledge, but will be my beta from now on. A beta is someone who reads over your stuff before you post it and tells you where to improve and stuff. He's good at what he does, and…yeah.

Oh, almost forgot! I'm going to need help from one of you guys for part of the next chapter. If you think you can speak/write in fluent/good/enough French, say so in a review. I'll PM you with more details.

That was a very long introduction. But I'll torture you no longer. Enjoy the show, my duckies. Oh, and check my profile. You might like it there.

* * *

**Chapter 13  
**Day Seven: The Emancipation

For the first time in a long time, Jeremie felt calm.

Okay, so he was still in the deep past, and quite stuck there for the time being. So he was thoroughly confused by Franz's philosophical conjectures. So the grass was getting a bit itchy in places not meant to be itched. But, at the very least, he was okay.

He laughed, just a little. He had no idea why. He lay on the ground, just giggling. Maybe it was the madness finally creeping up on him, he wondered. Maybe it was the nice, warm feeling before one freezes to death. But, what the hey. It was happiness.

He got up, humming nonsense to himself, using whatever dignity he had left not to skip onto the campus, and just walk like a normal human. He almost blindly repeated the process of registering himself for the day (and therefore accidentally leaving out his last name), and then sat under the tree, letting giggles escape every now and then.

Somehow, it had just hit him that he had free reign over the day. He could do anything, and at the end, it'd be all erased. He laughed. Maybe he could graffiti a wall. Or throw things over the fence. Or leave. Or…eh, maybe not. Better to keep a low profile. He wasn't the only master of this day, after all.

_Riiiiiiing._ He watched, patiently, as the students filled the campus, talking, laughing, oblivious to him, unaware that there had been seven years since the last time they woke up. Unaware that this time might not exist in several hours. He scanned the crowd. Old Kadic was surprisingly ugly.

His eyes stopped to linger on a familiar shade of red. She was leaning against a tree, untampered by the revisions, twirling her hair, supposedly waiting for a friend. Chris. Jeremie shook his head, to get that name out. He just kept looking at her, eyes never trailing from her face. Sure, he was in a pretty good mood. Maybe he could have some fun today. Some fun involving this pink-haired beauty.

He'd follow her around all day.

Feeling confidence swell inside him like a cheap balloon, Jeremie stood, and tried to walk calmly over to her, though he had a feeling that he could be unconsciously marching. He kept reminding himself of the same things- stay calm, talk to her like a normal human being. Girls like confidence. Girls like confidence.

"_Who the hell are you?_"

He began to sweat. Just a little bit.

Finally, he approached her. She was looking in the other direction, and hadn't noticed him. He took a deep breath, and began to speak.

"Uhm…" No response. He must have been too quiet. He unconsciously tugged at his collar. "Uh…hi…"

No response…and then slowly, silently, she looked up, uninterested. "Hm?"

"Well…" He tried to focus on his hands- no collar tugging, no shaking. He took a deep breath, and spoke as calmly as he could. "I'm a shadow today, and I, well…do you know where the English class is? Just…wondering…" He smiled in what he hoped was a sincere, organic way.

"Hm." Her eyes widened a bit, and she looked at him with slightly renewed interest as she sized him up. She smiled, but only for a second. "That building. First door in. The one with all the corpses in it." She laughed at Jeremie's momentarily shocked expression. "I kid, I kid. Sorry, I just couldn't resist."

"Eh, it's okay, I guess…" He shrugged.

Aelita nodded in reply, a bit lackluster- and then she looked up, eyes brightening. "Chris!"

Jeremie turned around, and saw Chris, walking across the square. When he heard Aelita, he started running. When he saw Jeremie, he ran faster. Within seconds, he was skidding to a halt at her side, smiling brightly. Jeremie had hardly seen him smile since the first or second revision.

"Hey, Aelita, what's kickin?" He was talking to Aelita, but he was looking at Jeremie. It was clear he wanted an explanation.

"Ah…nothing. Some kid just wanted directions is all. Shadow. You know." She shrugged, and her eyes began the long trek back to nowhere.

"Oh, okay." He smiled at Jeremie, but his eyes gave a look that said something like, 'Why are you still here?'

"Y-yeah…yeah." He was now a bit unnerved by Chris's presence. He smiled at the two, wanly, and then his courage ran out. "Uh, uh, thank you!" He turned and walked, calmly, towards the school buildings. He was resisting urges to run.

He almost thought he could hear a whisper behind him, too quiet to tell the gender. "Interesting kid. Interesting."

* * *

The morning was, oddly enough, a more enjoyable experience than Jeremie had had lately.

Maybe it was because he had finally talked to Aelita on an equal level again. He didn't sit next to her in any classes, so as not to incur Chris's wrath, but he did sit behind her whenever he could, and tried to talk to her when the teacher's back was turned. This didn't quite work very well. Teachers are not quite as deaf as one might think.

Lunch came a bit too quickly. As quickly as he wished it came in his own timeline, on an ordinary day…except with a bit less to look forward to.

"Are you following us or something?" Chris twirled his fork in his spaghetti, not noticing that he already had all of it there.

"Well, you seem to know what you're doing." Jeremie laughed. He had sat closer to Chris and Aelita today, to Aelita's indifference and Chris's confusion, and was trying to engage them- well, the better-looking half, mostly- in conversation. It was working, a little. "So, uh…"

"Heh. I guess we really haven't introduced ourselves, eh? I'm Chris, that's Aelita-" he gave her the most fleeting look- "-and you?"

"Jeremie." He stuck his fork in his slop, lost his appetite, and looked up again. "So, uh, why are you guys here, anyway? At Kadic, I mean. Is it good, is it…"

Aelita opened her mouth, but Chris got there first. "Yeah, it's pretty cool, a few weirdo teachers here and there, but, yanno, all schools are like that, eh?" He laughed. "But for us, it's kind of forced. My uncle's the…well…he works here, somewhere…" His eyes trailed a bit. "But her dad's-"

"My dad's the science teacher." She didn't look up.

Jeremie stared for a moment, unsure how to continue, and then a thought struck him. "Oh, him? You mean Mr. Hopper, right? I heard about him."

"You did? How?" Aelita's interest seemed to be piqued- she stole a glance at him. Chris's forehead twitched.

"Well, from the other kids, you know? They say he's uh, no offense, but…" He tugged at his collar. "Uh…"

"Crazy?" She laughed, moving her plate as not to snort into her glop. "Yeah, I guess he's a little..."

"You kidding? He's awesome!" Chris was once again shooting his mouth off. "I mean, he's, like, really scary-looking, and a bit of a psychopath- s-sorry, Aelita…" He looked uncertainly at Aelita, smiling nervously. She just shrugged. He took that as an approval, and continued. "But he's really cool! Right, Aelita?"

"Mmm." She laughed a little to herself. "Medea seems to think it's funny to hit him."

"Hit him?" Jeremie tilted his head in confusion.

"Yeah. She'll walk up, hit him for no reason, like, as a joke, and then run away. But then again, she's crazy too. In a more fun way," Chris added as an afterthought.

"Oh, uh, okay." Jeremie smiled. "Just wanted to know, I guess."

"Probably did." Aelita smiled, and looked out the window. "He's a bit silly, true…but we're family. We're there for each other. After all…" She smiled, weakly. "We're all we've got, really."

"N-no, that's not true, Aelita-" He reached to clasp her hand. Then, Aelita realized what he was doing, and he pulled back. He scrunched up, and looked at the ground, face noticeably reddening. "I-I mean, I'll be there for you, right?"

Aelita looked confused for a second, and then laughed. "Um, okay. I guess I forgot about friends."

"Y-yeah." He looked up, even redder, but slightly happier.

Jeremie discreetly stood up, mumbled "Sorry, bathroom" and ran out of the lunchroom. If he'd stayed another minute, he probably would have made a comment.

* * *

Franz Hopper never failed to confuse Jeremie.

Today, he chose to completely ignore him. Through the entire hour-long Science class, he didn't call on, speak to, or even look at Jeremie. He, personally, didn't mind this. It was a bit of a break. Though, as he pretended to listen, it gave him a chance to notice more things about each class. Like the second revision, Franz had chosen to talk about computers that day. Remembering that day, Jeremie kept his mouth shut. Not that anyone would listen anyway.

But something really was different. Whenever Franz would look in Aelita's general direction, his eyes would linger on her for a moment, and his face would twitch, almost in regret. Then, he would continue teaching as if nothing had happened. He couldn't make heads or tails of it, but he didn't mind.

The rest of the afternoon was, as always, exceedingly boring, and very, very slow. The three of them didn't interact much during the rest of the day, but at the end, they found themselves in the woods, standing together, with nothing to do. This was slightly less than coincidental.

"So…" Chris looked at Jeremie uncertainly. "Day's over, eh? That means you gotta go, right?"

"Not necessarily. My parents won't be here for another half hour. I can hang around." He shrugged. It was somehow easier now to lie on the fly with a straight face.

"Oh…really. 'Kay then." He stood for a minute, staring at him.

"Hmm…Chris," Aelita said, sounding hopeful, "Is it okay if I go to the Delmas's place? I really wanted to see Elisabeth again-"

"Oh, uh, oh, kay…" His face scrunched up a bit- it was clear that was the last thing he wanted to do. He was still looking at Jeremie. "Are you…?"

"Uh, no, it's okay, I'll just wait here."

The comment had its anticipated effect- his face calmed instantly. "Okay, that's okay. We-hell…" He made a show of checking a nonexistent watch. "I, uh, just remembered I promised my uncle I'd help clean out the gutters. So, uh, _bye_." He was out of there in an instant. Jeremie and Aelita were now alone. A bead of sweat came on Jeremie's face.

"Heh. Thought he'd never leave." She laughed, that small, still, unenthused laugh. She turned her back to him. "Well…I guess I should go. Have a nice day."

"No- wait, wait!" He turned his head towards her. "Actually I…I think I'd like to go there. That's where that English teacher lives, right?"

"Uh, yes." She nodded. "Her, her husband, and her daughter. I think she's there right now."

"Okay, good. I wanted to…ask her something."

"Fine by me." She walked in the house's general direction. Jeremie followed after her, happy to have some time with her at last. Maybe it was his mood, but the woods leading to the house seemed to be lovelier than ever, sunlight streaming through their leaves in just the right, perfect way.

_It's strange, _Jeremie thought, walking along, smiling genuinely for the first time in a long time. _It's one of those moments when you just feel lucky to be alive._

* * *

"Well, everyone's loony in their own way, right?"

Medea laughed loudly. She was standing in her kitchen, leaning against the counter, an unopened box of macaroni and cheese in front of her. Sissi was tugging against her pant leg- she obviously wanted the contents of the box.

"But you're loony in a _good_ way." Franz tried to give a smile, but it seemed a little forced. He was leaning on the other side of the counter, tense and unfocused. He sighed. "I seem to be losing my grip on reality, bit by bit."

"Well, all I can do for you is keep you away from sharp objects. Speaking of objects- yes, Sissi, I'm making it for you right now." She smiled at the toddler, and opened the box. Very, very slowly.

"I'm being serious, Medea," Franz replied, almost mockingly- and then his voice grew weary. "You're the one who understands these kinds of things. Do I seem to be doing the right thing? You know…" His sorrowful tone grew even more so. "…for Aelita?"

"Franz, I'm a human. Don't warp me into a goddess." She sighed, discreetly letting go of the box. "'Sides, she seems plenty happy to me, and she doesn't hate you, if that's what you're afraid of."

"I certainly hope so."

There was a tense silence for a long time. Even Sissi stopped her tugging.

"Medea."

"Hm?" She stood up straight, intrigued by his dark tone.

"I think it's time that Aelita and I…moved on. To a new place. Somewhere we can get a breath of new air."

Medea stood shaken for a moment- and then her mouth began working again. "Eh? Not that I'm stopping you or anything, but nothing's happened for you to need to leave. You've only been here, what, five years? You're happy, Aelita's happy-" She stopped. "When are you leaving?"

"A week. A month. A few years. Maybe…an hour or two." He laughed sarcastically to himself, a wicked smile crossing his face. "I know everything you said to me. It's just…" His muscles tensed. "Am I doing the right thing? Taking her away?"

Medea froze. "I'm…not quite sure I get what you mean."

Franz shrugged. "Fine by me." His head pivoted towards an open back door. "You keep your soda outside, right?" He walked towards said door. "I'm going to get one. I'll leave you some time to think." Sure enough, he disappeared out the door.

The raven-haired woman turned down to her daughter, who had been clinging to her in silence the entire time. She looked back.

"Loon." She gave a lopsided smile. "Now, how about that macaroni and cheese?"

"Ice cream?" She smiled, widely.

"It might taste like that if you concentrate hard enough," she replied. Laughing, she took her daughter in her arms, and swung her around, their shouts merging almost as one.

* * *

"Hey! Wait up!"

Aelita really could walk fast if she wanted to. The house was just visible in the distance, and just a tiny bit closer to it was a small pink blur. Jeremie was running as fast as he could, but as you can imagine, he wasn't exactly built for such nonsedentary work.

"For whom?" she replied, almost sarcastically. She stopped, allowing Jeremie to catch up a bit. "Our reasons for coming here are separate, after all."

"Uh, yeah, I know…" He tugged at his collar again. "It's just…nice, you know? Walking along, and stuff…"

"I suppose it is." She didn't seem to want to talk to him much. "Uhm…Jeremie…"

"Eh?" He arched an eyebrow.

"Nothing. Nothing." She smiled, and kept running towards the door. Jeremie smiled coyly, knowing she wouldn't see, and ran to catch up once more.

* * *

The laughs faded slightly as Medea set Sissi on the floor. More enthused now, she ripped the box open, and set some water to heat on a nearby stove. She hummed as she watched bubbles popping on the surface, a tune only she knew. Sissi laughed as she tried to look and see as well. Medea held her hand back as she was about to place it on the hot coils.

_Thump. _She looked up for a millisecond, and then turned back to the pot. She took the box that was in her other hand, and poured in the small white noodles. Smiling, she looked back at her daughter. "Want to add the cheese?"

"Okay!" Sissi laughed hysterically as she was lifted up by her mother, and given the small bag of powdered cheese. She proceeded to throw it out the open window.

"Erm…okay." Medea set Sissi down. "Maybe I should get a new box, then…"

"No…" Sissi didn't stop smiling. "Macaroni and NO cheese!" She laughed.

Medea smiled. "Well, okay, then. But it might not taste all that good." She turned to stir the noodles, more for effect than anything.

There was a small breath of sound, one blended perfectly with the wind outside. Sissi heard it. She looked opposite her mother, confused for a moment, and then forgot it had ever happened.

It came again, louder now. Medea snapped her head up, looked around, and finally yelled, "The sodas are over there, you dingbat!"

There was a loud crash, and Franz poked his head into the doorway. "I knew where they were. See?" He held up a small Sprite.

A bit confused now, Medea arched an eyebrow. Leaving the pot to simmer, she walked a little closer. "…'Kay, so it wasn't you that…huh." She shrugged. "Whatever."

"Certainly." Opening his soda, Franz stepped in the door, and walked closer to Medea, rather imposingly. "Well…do you have an answer for me?"

"For what?" She tilted her head to one side.

"Ah…never mind." His glance trailed off.

She held a straight face for a moment before sneaking a snigger. "C'mon, Franz, I was just kidding. I just didn't think about it at all is all." She shrieked in hysterics, holding on to the counter for support. Franz looked away, so she wouldn't see him rolling his eyes.

As she was laughing, she noticed something out of the corner of her eye. Sissi was still standing behind the counter, by the stove, transfixed by something in the opposite doorway. She was completely motionless, not daring to move a muscle.

"Sissi? What's the matter?" Curious, she looked up at the doorway. Her pupils widened.

"Is that a…"

A thick fog of black smoke hung motionless in the air, like the smog from a fire. But there was no burning smell, or hint of a fire at all. It was just there. Franz didn't see it; he was busy with his soda. But Sissi saw it. And Medea saw it.

"Funny," she wondered aloud, stepping slightly closer. "What the hell is-"

_Swush._

…

* * *

"Admit it. I won."

Jeremie bent down on his knees, fighting to stay upright, panting. Aelita stood above him, showing no signs of fatigue.

"I'm just not used to this, okay?" He made a pathetic attempt at a sneer.

"Whatever. Just…go in and ask your question." She shrugged.

"Maybe I will." He stood up…and allowed himself one glance in her eyes.

A glance that lasted a few minutes.

Aelita stared back, a bit bemused. "Well?"

"Uh, yeah, sorry." Seeming as normal as possible, Jeremie flung the door open. "Hey, Medea, we're here!"

* * *

…

…

_Well, whaddya know._

_I missed._

_All that preparation. All that loathing. All those cups of coffee, and I missed the freaking target._

_Oh Franz, my dear father, why does death elude you so easily? All I had to do was show you how much I cared for you, and everything would be alright between us. But now…I am weak…so weak once more…your tender care has been wasted. _

_Your damn sweet love, daddy. _

_Baah._

…

…

_Black shrouds do not have the best of depth perception._

…

…

_This really should be terrible._

_But…somehow, it isn't._

_Things are never what they first appear to be._

_This could actually be…a secret blessing, just for me._

…

…

_One down._

_My first._

_It feels so wonderful._

…

…

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAUGH!"

* * *

It was this scream that greeted Jeremie's ears as the door was opened. It definitely was the farthest thing from what he had expected. It reverberated in his eardrums and numbed his brain. He could hardly think for a whole minute, and assumed the absolute worst. Behind him, Aelita trembled, eyes wide in fear.

"Me-Medea?" he screamed at the scream. Without thinking, he grabbed Aelita by the arm, and dragged her along as he nearly flew across the hallway to the kitchen. The noise was over, but the sight was still to come.

It's hard to use words to describe just how shocked he was.

Medea stood in the middle of the kitchen, bolt upright, almost as solid as the furniture, as though some dark malevolence were holding her there. A funny, gagging noise sounded from her throat, and she was trembling slightly. Her face was a mask of nightmares- eyes open, shocked, unblinking, face drained of all blood, mouth gaping. There was almost a funny feeling in the air around her, as though she weren't there, and could not be sensed.

Then, very suddenly, she gasped, and went rigid as a board. Her eyes rolled back into her head, leaving disgusting, white holes where brown warmth had once been, and she collapsed. A trail of blood sprayed from her mouth as she fell, flying quite a distance and splattering Aelita. Her eyes went almost as blank as Medea's had been. On impulse, Jeremie grabbed her around the shoulders and hugged her towards himself, shoving her head into his chest, obscuring her view of the woman.

There was a distinct crack as Medea hit the floor. It was clear that several bones had been broken. Her beautiful black hair was disheveled over her face, hiding the nightmare, and her sweater was stained by the spray of blood.

She was quite clearly dead.

"N…n…" Jeremie couldn't find a voice to describe it. It was the first time he'd seen a dead body, and it wasn't all that pretty. A thousand scenarios flooded his mind, none of them making any sense, all of them chaotic in the relative still.

He felt Aelita strain against him, trying to get away and see. A sharp pain struck in his mind. He looked down at her head, pity crossing his face. "N…no…no…no, don't look, Aelita…." He calmly began to stroke her hair. "You don't need to see…you don't need…to see…"

A tear rolled down his face, more for Aelita's sake than anyone else's. She calmed down, and lay limp, but muffled whimpers could still be heard from the space between her face and his shirt. Whimpers he could hardly bear to hear.

"Yeah, that's right…it's okay…it's okay, Aelita…everything's going to be oka-" There was a small rustle of noise. Jeremie's head jerked up, holding Aelita still tighter, as if that would protect her from anything. A grey head of hair rose tentatively from behind the counter, followed by a face, preceded by a large pair of glasses. Franz Hopper.

"G…God." His voice was trembling. He was about to slink back down when he noticed Jeremie. Both his eyebrows rose- it was clear that his eyes were very wide, wider still when he saw Aelita.

"Is…is she…" His eyes lingered on the bloodstains on her jacket.

"She's alright," Jeremie replied, almost in a monotone. "I…I couldn't let her see it…I just…" He hung his head, and looked to the side.

"She's dead…isn't she?"

Franz stood to his full height, and walked around the counter to Medea's body, staring at Jeremie the entire time. Finally, he knelt down beside Medea, and lifted her hair. He recoiled in shock.

"That looks like dead to me." He shook his head. "I don't understand…she was perfectly fine before…" He sighed, and stood. "Why…"

"…Mommy?"

His already shocked brain now went numb. He spun in the direction of the voice- there, standing in a corner, was Sissi. She was completely still, though clearly alive and unharmed. At least, until you saw her eyes, blank, dead, staring at the remains of the woman who, barely five minutes before, had laughed with her and tossed her in the air.

Under Franz and Jeremie's shocked expressions, she walked closer to the body, and knelt beside it. She appeared too scared and confused to cry, just calling, hoping that at some point, she'd respond. "Mommy…mommy…"

"Sissi! NO!" Aelita screamed in terror, struggling against Jeremie more furiously than ever. He fought to keep her in place, but she refused to relax.

"It's okay, Aelita. She'll be okay." Shaking, Franz knelt again, and placed an enormous hand on Sissi's tiny shoulder. "Don't worry, Sissi. Mommy will be…okay…"

The small girl stared at her mother, making minute calculations about what to do. Finally, she looked at Franz, with a very straight face. Her eyes didn't change from their haunted look.

"A…black bird." She pointed at the ceiling, and was silent.

Even Aelita stood stunned at these words. They seeped through the spongier parts of Jeremie's brain, trying to find sense, but eluding it constatntly. His arms loosened from around Aelita's chest- she was still held fast, but she could move her head. Slowly, her eyes became visible, wide, cold, and stunned.

"We…" Jeremie felt the conclusion rise in his mind, didn't want to think about it, knew it was true. He turned Aelita's head away once more. "We'll have to tell Mr. Delmas…eventually." He looked at the ground, hair falling in his eyes. "It's not like…we can keep the truth from him for very long."

"…true." Franz nodded, as much as he could when his head was as low as it was. He stood, leaving Sissi by the body, and walked slowly, zombielike, past Jeremie into the front hall. Just as slowly, Sissi stood, and walked after him. He didn't notice.

The three remaining didn't move. Jeremie was in shock. He could hardly believe this. Today was supposed to be great. Perfect. Why did this woman have to die? Come to think of it…why _did_ she die? She was alive and well in the other revisions…alive long after…

Aelita was in shock. Now that she could see the body, she did nothing but look at it. All attempts by Jeremie to pull her back were met with steely resistance. Eventually, he gave up, and settled instead for merely quietly stroking her hair, to calm her down.

Medea was dead, of course.

There was a sound of a door opening in the hall, and a familiar voice was heard. "Hey, I- oh, hey there, Franz. Look, I really need to talk to someone."

"Jim."

"You see, young Chris and I were cleaning out the gutters together, and we found this rather large live weasel, and we need someone's opinion on whether or not to-"

"Jim."

"Hey, hey, _what?_"

There was a pause. When Franz's voice came back, it was shaking. "I need you…to go get Jean-Pierre. And bring him here. Right now."

"Wh-"

"Don't ask questions, Jim. Just go get Jean-Pierre. Tell him…tell him it's important."

"Now wait a minute, Franz, what's going on here. You look like someone just…died…"

A different voice piped in- high, quiet, and haunting.

"Mommy…mom…mmy…"

There was a very, very long pause.

"I…I'll get him right away. And…and I'll tell him…that it's important. Thank you, Franz. Thank you."

* * *

-Carth 


	14. Band Aids on Broken Hearts

"_Ce doit être trés important, Jim."_

"_Oui, c'est important…mais je ne suis pas sûre qu'est-ce qu'il est. Vieux Franz dit tu as rentrer." Jim scratched his head. "Mais j'ai un sentiment il est exact…"_

_They approached the house, calm and normal as always. Jim stepped aside, letting Jean-Pierre open the door to his own home. As he stepped in, he was met with a cold, stony silence, even with the bright light and warmth in the hall._

"_Ah…bonjour? Franz? Medea?" He looked around. "Personne?"_

"_En ici." The voice was soft, quiet. Intrigued, Jean-Pierre hurried into the opposite hall._

_He quickly found his way blocked by his employee, Franz Hopper. His expression was unreadable through his thick glasses, but he was stiff, still, and appeared to want to say something. His lips moved, but no sound came out._

"_Franz, porquoi, qu'est-ce qu'il?" His eyes widened in confusion. Franz merely shrugged, and looked at the ground._

"_Porquoi-"He looked around wildly. His eyes stopped dead on his daughter, standing beside Franz, not smiling or laughing as she always was, but silent, her face expressionless. This unnerved him quite a bit._

"_Elisabeth?" He bent to her height, putting a hand on her shoulder. "Elisabeth, qu'est-ce qu'il?"_

_She didn't respond. She just stared up at him, silently looking for an answer._

"_Je ne comprende pas ce! __Admettez moi__!" He pushed past Franz, taking special care not to trod on his daughter, and ran into the kitchen._

_He did not notice the unfamiliar boy backed into the wall, holding a girl to his chest. In fact, he did not notice anything wrong with the room at all, other than that stillness... He only had a moment to be puzzled, however, when all other thoughts were driven out of his mind. Every single last one of them._

_He turned to see the other side of his kitchen, and froze. There, facedown on the floor, was his wife, his true love. Small spots of blood littered the area, and the woman showed no signs of stirring. It was as though all his nightmares had come true at once._

"_Gkkkk…" That was all he could manage. He staggered closer to her corpse, and dropped on his knees. His eyes were locked on her, wide, resembling those of the rest of his family._

_Hand trembling madly, he reached down, gently as he could, to brush some hair from her face. His living eyes met her dead, and his face blanched. Slowly, he caressed her face. "Muh…muh muh muh…Mèdea…" _

_That was as far as he got. He trembled, and then slumped over her. He was still alive, as seen by his breathing, but the breath was erratic, and labored. Above him, Franz balked. _

_He turned to the children in the corner, who appeared terrified- or at least, the boy did. "C'est meilleur…si tu vas maintenant. Ce n'est pas trés belle."_

_Jeremie nodded. Quietly, he put a hand over Aelita's mouth, and left the house._

_Franz Hopper was not lying. No sooner had they left the door, an inhuman roar split the silence- one of the utmost pain and anguish. Jeremie's eyes widened, wondering if he could disable all of Aelita's senses, prevent her from being tainted like this. But one thing was for sure. As long as he lived, he never, ever wanted to hear a human scream like that. Ever again._

"_NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO…"_

* * *

**Chapter 14  
**Band-Aids on Broken Hearts

"Now come along, nothing to see, nothing to see…no, no, stop, get your hands off the Caution tape! I told you there was nothing to see!"

Jeremie cringed as he peeked out from behind the house, sweating, holding Aelita in an iron grip, watching Jim try to prevent four hundred students from breaking through the plastic barriers of Caution tape that the police, who had arrived about ten minutes earlier complete with an ambulance and medical staff, had set up. Of course it had attracted the students's attention, and of course everyone wanted to see. They just didn't know what all the commotion was about yet.

The moment of truth had to come eventually. A door swung open loudly, followed by a scream that pierced the silence as two official looking men marched out of the house, carrying something wrapped in a slightly bloodstained white sheet. A shock of black hair stuck out of the outside end. They were followed up immediately by Jean-Pierre, who was tripping over his own feet and babbling incoherently, screaming at the men carrying the corpse; Franz, who looked shocked but held his own; and finally Sissi, who was perfectly, eerily calm.

Everyone figured it out instantly. More screams joined the first; everyone was now ripping at the Caution tape. It took Jim, ten teachers, and five policemen to get everyone under control, and even then it wasn't as much control as it was a forced standstill.

"All civilians, clear the area!" one medic screamed. He stood by Jean-Pierre, who was still screaming at the men with his wife's body. "I'm sorry, sir, but we do have to take the body in for an autopsy, rule out the cause of death and such. Everything will be just fine as long as you cooperate, okay?"

Jean-Pierre stopped screaming, but looked back at the medic, revulsed. He didn't look ready to cooperate with anyone at all. The medic sighed. There was a spark of fire as he lit a cigarette, and took a long drag. "It's a confusing case, that's for sure. She doesn't seem to have been bludgeoned, and we can't find any entrance sites for poison. There's a chance that this may have been an illness of which she- or you- was unaware, but we'll have to go to autopsy for that. You say there were no witnesses?"

"Just the girl," Franz interrupted, gesturing towards Sissi, who had not moved. "I was outside when I heard a scream…and when I came inside, she was lying on the floor."

"Is that your alibi?" a nearby policeman asked.

"Yes."

"Fine then." The policeman also lit a cigarette. "It is certainly very curious how these things can play out in a case…"

"A case?" There was a collective gasp as Jean-Pierre finally spoke, turning away from the wrapped body. His face was livid. "That's all she is to you? A case? _A case?_" He lunged for the policeman, but the medic held him back. Jean-Pierre didn't like this- he screamed and fought against him. "You have no idea what you're talking about! Damn you! DAMN YOU! Get off me! Don't take her away! DON'T TAKE HER AWAY!" More policemen and several teachers entered the fray, trying to restrain him with little success.

Jeremie's eyes widened as he witnessed all the insanity. "I guess grief really can drive you to madness," he said to himself. Sensing that Aelita had calmed herself, he took his hand off her mouth, and gave her a bit more room for movement. Finally free, she shook her head, and then looked up at him, eyes wide, questioning. She tried to speak, but seemed to be unable to make words. "I…I…"

"I know. I know it's hard." He looked to the side, trying not to react to her pained expression. "But…" He lost his voice as well. Instead, he just looked across at the front lawn, where things were getting a bit ugly. Jean-Pierre, in his flailing, had torn the cloth from Medea's face. This had generated more screaming from the students, who were now struggling even harder against the teachers.

"Hey! I told them all to clear out! HEY! Where'd he go?" The medic whirled around to find that Jean-Pierre had broken away, and had lunged for body, grabbing his wife's face and screaming, as though that could bring her back. "No, no! Get away from that! It's ours now! You have to let us take it! You have to…"

* * *

A few feet away from the spectacle, Sissi stood by Mr. Hopper, eyes still blank and staring. 

She had seen it happen, she was watching now, but she didn't understand. Usually, when someone fell over, you helped them back up, didn't you? But Mommy had fallen over, and nobody had helped her up. Instead, these funny men in the white coats were wrapping her in a sheet and taking her into a van. Why were they doing that? And why was Daddy crying so much? Because they wouldn't give Mommy back? Why were they taking her if it was making him sad? You were supposed to make someone happy if they were sad. But Daddy was still unhappy, and nobody was helping him.

She wanted to ask all of these questions, but she was afraid to. She was sure it wouldn't make sense to her. Or that they would lie. Or that she wouldn't know the right words. After all, she was only two.

She looked at her mother. They had taken the sheet off her face, so everyone could see her. This was good. Mommy was very pretty. But usually her mother smiled, which made her even prettier. But now everything about her was blank, not happy or sad or anything. Was that because she fell? Or because Daddy was sad? She couldn't see why.

As she took a step forward, trying to get a closer look, Sissi saw something on her mother's forehead- a faint, red dot. Mommy was hurt. Had the black bird hurt her? No matter. One thing was certain- nobody else had seen it. So she had to do something about it.

But first, she needed some help. And help came from grown-ups. She looked around, and saw one of the women in white coats. Slowly, she walked towards her. The woman took a quick look at her, and then whirled around, looking concerned.

"Oh! You, why, you really shouldn't be watching this, dear-"

That wasn't what Sissi wanted to hear. Unabated, she stretched her hand out. "Band-Aid," she said in a monotone.

The woman stared at her, and then her face changed, a mixture of surprise and awe, almost fear. "Oh, well, okay then…" She reached into her bag, pulling out a small, flimsy, comfortingly familiar plastic Band-Aid in a sterile wrapper. "Hope this helps."

"Thank you." She turned away from the woman, and began walking, slowly, calmly, away from the sidelines and towards the spectacle on the lawn. All of the commotion seemed to freeze as she stepped closer, into the sight of all present. Even Jean-Pierre ceased resistance, watching, though his eyes remained frozen in terror. Some of the police and medics attempted to call her away, talking to her softly, offering her anything, anything to make her stop, but she simply walked around them. The teachers, however, stepped aside, giving her a clear path to her destination.

All watched silently as she finally approached the body, still held by two very confused medics. Mommy's face was still unwrapped, her blank eyes staring right through her daughter. On her forehead, right in the middle, was the faint red dot that Sissi had seen from the distance. Now, it was clearer, larger…and it had a shape. Like an eye. With eyelashes, she thought.

Whatever this eye was, she reasoned, it must have hurt Mommy. It must have been the reason why they were taking her away. And in her mind, there was one way to reverse a hurt. Slowly, she unwrapped the Band-Aid, stretched it out in her hands, and applied it to the wound. She smiled down at the blank face. She knew that when this cut had healed, Mommy would be okay. Then they'd bring her back, Daddy would be happy, and they'd all go out for ice cream.

She didn't notice how everyone had stopped in their tracks, watching her, not knowing what to say. The medics and police were whispering to one another, coming to no certain conclusion. Franz, who still stood out of the way, gave her a small, approving smile. But her father looked the most dramatic of all- panting heavily, eyes wide, tears filling his eyes. "Elis…Elisabeth…"

He began struggling against his captors again. Sensing he was only reaching for his daughter, they tentatively let him go, but stayed close behind. He fell to his knees, and crawled to his daughter, who had stepped away from the body, and was now staring off into space, lost in her victory.

"Elisabeth…you…you shouldn't be here…" He reached out to her with a shaking hand, held it there, and then withdrew it when he saw she did not reach for it. "Don't worry, Elisabeth…Mommy's…going to be okay…" He sounded more as though he was trying to convince himself, rather than Sissi. But the girl did not respond. She just stood still, her back to her father.

"Elisabeth…?"

No reply. And then, slowly, she turned her head to face him. Her face was more blank than ever.

"Sissi."

Jean-Pierre stopped crying, but not in the best of ways. His eyes widened, absorbing the tears, and when he spoke, it was nothing more than a nervous, high whisper. "What… what did you say?"

"Sissi. I'm Sissi, Daddy."

* * *

Jeremie couldn't tell what, exactly, had happened, but he did see Jean-Pierre collapse, bawling, again. Some teachers were trying to calm him down, as others pulled Sissi away from the entire scene, past the Caution tape. The kids had stepped away from the barrier; they were no longer visible, and Jeremie could see cars beginning to arrive over the gate. He supposed the parents had been called and told. 

Slowly, without any sort of expression, Franz walked over to the body, and did something. Jeremie couldn't tell what he had done, as his back was to him, but as he did it, he spoke. "It was a gesture of love. You should be proud of her." He paused. "Ah… but it's unfortunate that it can't help. She had so much going for her. If it weren't for the fact that she's dead, she's at the pinnacle of health… but the fright on her face…" He sighed. "Is it possible for someone to be frightened to death?"

These words brought about a great change in Jean-Pierre. Where he had been sniveling on the ground, he suddenly snapped up, a sinister grin on his face. He chuckled. "You certainly seem very certain about that, Franz."

"Perhaps," he replied. "I am merely inferring-"

Jean-Pierre completely ignored him. "Am I right in saying that you were a witness to the murder?"

Franz looked up, eyes raised. "I did not witness the death itself, if that's what you mean-" He looked around. "And who here said it was a murder?"

"I did!" He leapt up, to the surprise of those behind him. "Because perfectly healthy people do not drop dead for no reason!"

Franz stared at him for a moment…and then a look of clarification came over his face. Horrible, horrible clarification. "Jean-Pierre Delmas," he said, surprised, "Are you implying-"

"As well," he rambled on, "You were the _only_ one present when I got there, besides my daughter, of course… but it's a good thing I got there when I did." He panted, in a feral way. "Because you might have finished her off too."

There was a gasp from the medics and police. The teachers put their hands over their mouths. The two carrying Medea's body took this opportunity of his distraction to rewrap the woman's face, and to edge slowly towards the ambulance. ---

Franz tugged at his collar nervously. "I'm afraid I don't know what you're talking about-" He didn't finish. Before anyone could react, Jean-Pierre had lunged towards him, grabbing his throat.

"You know damn well, Hopper!" He tightened his grip. "You killed my wife, that's what you did! Yes…yes…" The smile never left him. "You're perfectly calm…you seem to know so much…I always knew something was wrong with you, Hopper…I should have known all along!"

"Oh my god," Jeremie gasped. He looked down at Aelita- she was staring at her father, eyes wide, trying to figure it all out. He moved to cover her eyes, but she reached up to push his hand away.

Franz's breath came in short gasps. "Trust me…Jean-Pierre…Medea was…a wonderful friend..and a good coworker, as are you." It was clear he was trying to calm him, even as he was being strangled. "Why would…you ever think-"

"The evidence is against you! I don't know why you did it, or how, but you…you BASTARD! BASTARD!" He kept one hand around Franz's neck and used the other to beat him as hard as he could, screaming "BASTARD!" with every hit. The ones who had restrained him before tried again, but to no avail. His determination was too much.

One policeman, watching this, ran to Franz, talking over Jean-Pierre's wails. He attempted to release the grip on his neck. "As overwrought as this man is, you have to admit he has a point. We'll have to take you in for more thorough questioning…sir, are you listening to me? Sir?"

Franz wasn't listening to him, or Jean-Pierre, or anyone. His eyes were dead on the road, in response to a noise that had just sounded, ignored by most. A car with very screechy brakes had just pulled up to the school- a small, sleek black one. Franz stared at it a moment, and then turned his attention back to Jean-Pierre, who had been pulled off of him and restrained once more in the meantime, but was still panting, a hungry look in his eyes, as if he wanted nothing else but to go for Franz's neck again.

"Well?" he said, eerily calmly. "Do you confess to it? Do you? DO YOU?" He struggled again.

Franz just kept staring at him, a weary, sad look on his face. After taking another glance at the car, which had not moved, he straightened up, and stepped closer to Jean-Pierre, placing a hand on his shoulder, and looking dead in his eyes. He sighed.

"It's a harsh world, Jean-Pierre. Good luck with it." He lowered his head, and made what looked like a casual glance to the side, but Jeremie noticed that under his shaggy hair and beard, his face was sharp, and he seemed to be staring right at him.

"_Run_," he mouthed.

Jeremie nodded quickly, and looked down at Aelita. She stared back at him- she evidently didn't understand. He shook his head, and then looked back at Franz. He hadn't moved- he just looked at Jean-Pierre, almost in pity, and then, suddenly, he _ran_. Everything was frozen for a moment, and then pandaemonium broke out. Policemen ran after him, but he just dodged him, and disappeared from sight through the trees.

Jean-Pierre roared; he fought still harder, to no avail. Several policemen disappeared from sight, and if Jeremie's eyes were correct, the door to the small, black car was opening. But he didn't want to stick around to see what would happen, not when everything was like this. He grabbed Aelita and ran into the adjacent forest.

* * *

"We can't let him get away!" 

Jean-Pierre made moves as though he wanted to chase after Franz, but of course, he was bound by about four people. So instead, he just kept struggling and screaming to the others. "Why are you just standing around? Get him! Get…"

He heard an engine start behind him. Horrified, he whirled his head around. The two very confused medics had deposited the body in the ambulance, and were now preparing to leave. A priority shifted in his mind. Medea.

"No! NO! Don't take her away! PLEASE! NO!" With an almighty shove, Jean-Pierre broke free, and ran after the ambulance. Several of those remaining, including Jim, ran after him, trying to coerce him into slowing down, but he didn't, wouldn't listen. It was Ms. Hertz who finally had an effect on him- or at the very least, the most noticeable effect. Entirely nonchalant, she stepped out in front of him, waited for him to come close enough, and-

_SMACK. _She hit him across the face, and he stopped dead in his tracks.

"Get a hold of yourself!" she screamed, jabbing a finger at him. "We understand that this is a hard time for everyone, but at the very least, keep some common sense!"

Jean-Pierre couldn't speak. He had a large, red, hand-shaped mark on his face now, and he looked absolutely dumbfounded. "Guh…Guh…"

"You are the authority figure in this school, in case you have forgotten, and the behavior you have just shown is beyond unacceptable! Look around! Your own daughter is handling this better than you are! I can hardly believe this, a grown man…" She slapped her own face, shaking her head. "I never thought I'd see it, never thought it could happen." ("It's like she's his mother," Jim said, not noticing that nobody else was making light of the situation.)

"I know, I know, Suzanne…" Jean-Pierre looked at the ground, calmer now, but a deep sadness still penetrating his voice. "I just thought…I thought I was going to…"

"Well, you're not. Don't think that I don't care for your loss…never think that…" She choked for a moment, and then continued. "But she_ is_ gone, and all the pleading, crying, and carrying on in the world won't bring her back. You're still here, you've got a daughter to raise, and that's what matters to you now."

He still looked at the ground, deeply shamed, breathing heavily. His lips moved, but he didn't speak. Her face softened considerably, perhaps in pity.

"…Medea wouldn't want to see you like this, would she?" she said in a quiet voice. "She'd hate it. You know she would. She'd want you to go on."

Jean-Pierre stood, silent…and then looked up, smiling calmly. "She…she would." He laughed a little to himself. "She'd probably pound my face in if I didn't…"

"That's what I'm talking about." She smiled. "Now, do I have to do it for her, or are you going to-"

"Excuse me."

Jean-Pierre looked up- and then got to his feet immediately, straightening his tie and brushing off his coat. Standing next to him, as though they had come out of nowhere, were two men in identical black suits. One was bald, the other not. They stared at Jean-Pierre with identical apathetic looks. The others in the area slowly backed away from them…not that they noticed. "We saw a man run away from this area a moment ago. Do you know which way he went?"

He blinked. "Uh…who are you?" he asked, putting on a falsely confident voice.

"We…well, the police sent us." The main with hair nodded, looking back at the police. They looked rather confused. One, braver than the rest, stepped forward a step or two. "No we didn't. What are you-"

The bald man gave him a steely glare, and he fell silent. His partner continued talking to Jean-Pierre. "We understand you have some scores to settle with this man. When we catch him, we will bring him straight to you."

"Uhm…" Jean-Pierre looked around in several directions, and finally pointed in one that looked right to him. "That way. Through that clump of trees. That's all I know, really…"

"Good enough. Thank you." They turned in the direction Jean-Pierre had pointed. As they did so, some of the policemen whispered to each other, and apparently coming to an agreement, they marched in front of the two men, blocking their path. They were headed by the same man as before, who seemed to have scooped up a little more bravery.

"Now wait a second," he said, pointing at the bald man. "We definitely didn't send for backup, and you're definitely not part of the police force. Who are you? Why are you going after this man? His crime was only just reported to the city department, let alone the general public…"

The man with hair laughed. His partner looked the policeman in the eye, as well as he could with his wraparound black shades. He spoke in a slightly lower voice than before, so that Jean-Pierre and Ms. Hertz could not hear. "You will find, sir, that we are hardly the general public. But…then again, neither is our target."

"It is hardly this insignificant incident that we are intrested in." The man with hair gave a sly smile. "'Franz Hopper'…he and our agency go far, far back." He withdrew his wallet, and flashed its contents at the policeman. "You must let us pass."

The policeman stared at whatever the wallet contained. His jaw dropped. "So, so you're the-"

"If you ask no questions, you will get no wrong answers. We will be going now." Without waiting for an excusion, the men simply walked around the group of policemen, and continued on into the woods. They stood motionless, some watching the men, others looking at the head policeman for an explanation.

"We…have to let them go." The man was still staring, as though the wallet was still in front of him. "This is…this is completely out of our hands. They'll take care of it, and they'll take care of it well." He nodded. The others said nothing.

Jean-Pierre's eyebrow twitched. "Wait…so, so you mean…what's going on?" The tension in his voice grew with every syllable.

"What's going on is," the policeman said, taking a breath as he extinguished his cigarette, placed it in his pocket, and immediately lit a new one, "Assuming everything that's said before now is true, your employee may be in a bit more trouble than the average everyday serial killer."

* * *

"Ghh…ghhh…" 

Jeremie ran through the forest, not really knowing where he was going, just trying to avoid trees. He was sure that he had to get to the Hermitage at some point… but Franz had just told him to run. He didn't say where to run.

Aelita was still pressed against him. It had been so long since had let her go, it was almost as though she were as much a part of his body as his head, or his left leg. He knew he couldn't let her go until she was safe. And she wasn't safe here.

Aelita whimpered in his arms. In concern, he stopped, letting her head loose for a moment to place what he hoped was a comforting hand on her shoulder. He opened his mouth, perhaps to say something meaningful, but he didn't get the chance. As soon as he had relaxed his grip, Aelita thrust her knee into his stomach, and kicked him backward.

"Ack…dammit…" Jeremie recoiled on instinct, clutching his hands to his stomach- and in that instant, Aelita was gone. Or at least, she was running as fast as she could in the opposite direction. Jeremie gasped.

"No, no no- wait! Wait!" Recovering as fast as he could, he sprinted off after her. He was no athlete, of course, but by most definitions, neither was Aelita. He actually caught up with her rather quickly. "I- I just want to help!" She looked back at him, face wrought with obvious disbelief, and kept running.

"No! Seriously! Just- stop-" Seeing a tree come up in their path, he got an idea. He sped up, got within a close distance of her, and then, concentrating as hard as he could, grabbed her by the shoulder and dragged her back. Then, he lunged for the tree with his other hand, pulling Aelita forward against the bark. He skidded to a halt, and pinned her there.

Even cornered like this, Aelita still struggled violently against him, punching, kicking and biting even more than Jean-Pierre had. Jeremie could hardly keep her down.

"Look," he tried to say, swerving to avoid her fist, "I'm not going to hurt you, okay? Just stay still, and-"

He caught her arm mid-swing. She stared at his arm for a moment, and then up at his face. She looked livid.

"It's not about you," she snarled. "Just leave me alone."

Jeremie's eyes widened. "No, I can't-" He thought again about his phrasing, and took a deep breath. "Why?"

"Why? WHY?" She wrenched his arm away. Painfully. "Because my life is falling apart, that's why! She's dead…I can't…I can't…I just had class with her this morning…"

"Things will go back to normal, Aelita, you know they will…" He moved his hand back. "It's only a matter of time…"

"How can you be so calm? Did you not SEE what happened?" Tears formed in her eyes. "My dad…I don't understand…how they could think…"

"He was just in the wrong place at the wrong time…"

"But they don't know that! I mean, you heard them…as far as evidence stands…"

She choked. Jeremie tried to reach his other hand out to her, but recoiled as she kept talking.

"And what about the Delmases? The principal…and Sissi…" A new level of horror entered her eyes. "Sissi! What's going to happen to her? I mean…she's too young to remember this, right? She can't be scarred for life or anything?"

"I don't really-"

"But I don't…I don't know…oh god…" She slumped. "It's all just happening so fast, you know…you'd never think…"

"You don't think that the impossible would happen when you don't expect it. Yeah. I know what you mean." Slowly, softly as he could, he reached out again, taking the back of her head. She looked up at him, in an almost bemused way. A tear escaped from her left eye. Then, roughly, she buried her head in his chest, moaning loudly even when muffled by his sweater.

Not really knowing what else to do, and nervous at the sight of it all, Jeremie patted her awkwardly on the head, and smiled. "It's going to be okay…you'll see."

"No it won't."

"…ah…" He looked away from her to recollect his thoughts. An odd notion came to him…calmly as he could, he ran his fingers through her hair, and began to sing. He was completely off-key, and his voice cracked quite a bit, but at this time, it didn't matter.

"_Ah vous dirai-je, maman, ce qui cause mon tourment. Papa veut que je raisonne, comme une grande personne..._"

It seemed to work. Though Aelita was still crying, it was quieter now, more subdued. Her entire body seemed to relax and go limp in his arms, though she didn't move more than that. She just lay there, listening. If one listened close enough, one could almost hear her humming along with him.

"_Moi, je dis que les bonbons valent mieux que la_…"

_Crunch. _Jeremie's head snapped up in panic, and he looked in all directions. His jaw dropped as he saw what had caused the noise. Chris was running through the forest towards them, stepping on just about every stick he could. Jeremie gasped, and moved Aelita around, trying to make her presence less prominent from Chris's view.

"Oh- oh, it's you!" He skidded to a halt in front of Jeremie, panting and looking flustered. He looked up at him, with wide eyes. "Hey, what are you doing here, anyway? I thought you said you went home."

"Uh-"

"Well, anyway, do you have any idea what's going on? I mean, I saw the ambulance and I heard screaming and stuff, but I couldn't get through all the crowds. There's all these wild rumors flying around, about murder and the principal going insane, but I don't know if they're true or not."

"Well-"

"But either way, I couldn't find Aelita, and I need to know where she-" He stopped dead midsentence as he looked down as Jeremie's lap, where Aelita still lay, now looking up at Chris with wide eyes. She had stopped crying, though her face was blotchy, and Jeremie's sweater had a large, wet stain on it. Her lips trembled. Chris's expression cycled rapidly from surprise, to confusion, to anger.

"You…you…" He seemed almost too shocked to speak. "What did you do to her?"

"He didn't do anything, Chris," Aelita tried to plead, but he ignored her as he yelled at Jeremie. "I don't know what you're trying to pull here, but unless you explain yourself right now, I'm gonna- gonna-"

He clenched his fist, trying to think of the next thing to say. In this time, Jeremie saw his chance. He gently moved Aelita's head off his lap, stood himself to his full height (about four inches shorter than Chris), and looked him in the eye. They stared at each other, brown meeting blue for a tense moment. Jeremie smiled with confidence.

"It's a harsh world, Chris," he said.

Before Chris could react, Jeremie grabbed Aelita's hand, pulled her off the ground, and sped off. He went so fast, powered by adrenaline, that she stumbled a few times behind him, but eventually got her footing. He didn't look back at her, but if he did, he would have seen that she was smiling.

Far behind him, he could hear Chris screaming. "Hey! Come back here! Damn you…" There were some footsteps- and then a sickening crunch. "Ow- stupid root…" And then silence. Sweet, sweet silence.

They ran through the forest, out the back entrances, onto a small, disused road. Only here, where they couldn't possibly be seen, did Jeremie chance a look back at Aelita. "Well, you okay?"

"Yeah, I guess so." She looked at the ground. "This…it's the road to my house."

"So it is."

"Are…are you taking me there?"

"Uh…well, I could, but I don't really know where it is." That was a lie, of course, but in Aelita's mind, he wasn't supposed to know.

"True."

There was silence for a time. Then, Aelita spoke up again.

"Um…thank you. For…before. I really needed it."

Jeremie swerved his head again, smiling with confidence. "Yeah…don't mention it. Now, where'd you say your house was?"

* * *

The Hermitage had an empty, airy feeling about it, as if it were already the future, and the house was abandoned. But, it wasn't, and Jeremie and Aelita stood before it together, rather nervously. Aelita was less nervous than Jeremie, after all, it was her home. 

"I…I'll go in first," she said to him, as she walked in the gate and towards the front door. "If my dad is there…he'll probably want to see me."

"I doubt he's there…" It wasn't logical for someone accused of murder to run back to his home, but then again, no one really knew where they lived. "But go ahead." He smiled at her, and she stepped ahead, going up the steps, trying the door, and finding that it was unlocked.

She ran inside, skipping every few steps. Jeremie walked slowly behind her, unsure of what he would see when he got to some main room, unsure what he wanted to see. She led him into the living room, the area with the fireplace and piano. Jeremie kept out of sight, but peeked in as Aelita ran in.

To his utter surprise, Franz Hopper was there, having escaped in one piece. Even more surprising, he did not appear to be in any state of panic. Most insane of all, he was just sitting at his piano, playing, as though this was any other day, any other afternoon. It unnerved him a bit. Just a bit. It seemed to unnerve Aelita as well. She shook noticeably as she walked closer, giving him a small wave. "Uh…hi, Daddy."

Franz stopped mid-note, if that was possible, and whirled round to face his daughter. He stared right at her, but did not make a sound.

"Um…" She turned in another direction, facing towards a hallway that Jeremie knew led to a stairway. "I'm going to my room now."

Franz just nodded his head at her. Aelita seemed to accept this. She walked towards the doorway- and then stopped midstep, as though a thought had struck her, one she didn't want to think about. She turned her head around, and even from a distance, she looked a bit scared. "Daddy…you didn't…" She took a deep breath. "You didn't really kill Medea, right?" Her voice broke on the last word.

Franz hadn't expected this, obviously. His face seemed to fall, and slowly, he shook his head. "You…you heard all that."

Aelita nodded meekly. Sensing that she could not prolong the conversation, she walked out of the room. There were hollow footsteps as she walked up the stairs. Franz returned to his piano playing, tuning out all else.

Jeremie supposed that this was a good time to reveal himself. With as much confidence as he could, he stepped out from behind his hiding spot at the wall and walked over to the piano. He still felt rather uneasy, but he tried to hide that.

"You…didn't, right?" he asked him.

Franz turned around again, still playing for a while afterwards. "Do I look like the kind of person that would kill someone?" he asked him, not in the bitter sarcasm Jeremie might have expected, but as a genuine question.

"Um…no." Yes. "Look…shouldn't you be hiding or something? I mean, the police'll probably get ahold of your home address soon enough, and then they'll…they'll come and…"

Franz interrupted him with an exasperated sigh. "The police, and Jean-Pierre for that matter, are the least of my worries right now." He turned back to the piano keys. "Go. Keep her distracted. There are preparations to be made."

_What preparations? Piano playing? _Jeremie thought, but kept this in his head. Instead, he nodded. "Yes. Yes, sir." He turned towards the doorway as well, ran through it, and ran up the stairs after Aelita.

* * *

…hahaha. Was that an angstfest or what? 

I said I probably wouldn't be back until NaNo was over. Well, this weekend, I had a sudden urge to write RTTP again (I've hit a dead end on my NaNo), so I did. The result was this.

The next chapter will be here soon. I can't wait to write it. That's all I'm saying for now. I'm happy you all still seem to like it.

- Carth

PS- Sorry about my terrible, terrible French in the first part there. I made it that way to heighten the emotion. I've only been taking classes for about three months, and I had my book open most of the time I was doing this. I had contacted JeremyxAelita Addict about translating that part but she didn't get back to me (okay, I contacted her a bit late, but…) if she does, I'll definitely replace it with her translation if it's better. For now, here's the English versions of their lines. Regular type is how I originally wrote it, italics is a literal translation of the bad French.

Jean-Pierre: This had really better be important, Jim. _This must to be very important, Jim.  
_Jim: Well, it is important…but I'm not really quite sure what it is. Ol' Franz just said he wanted you there. But I have a feeling he's right… _Yes, it is important, but I'm not sure what it is. Old Franz says you have to come back. But I have a feeling he is correct...  
_Jean-Pierre: Ah…hello? Franz? Medea? Anyone?  
Franz: In here.  
Jean-Pierre: Come on now, Franz, what is it? _Franz, why, what is it?  
_Why is- _Why-  
_Elisabeth? Elisabeth, what is it?  
I don't understand any of this! Let me through! _I do not understand it! Admit me!  
_Franz: It would be best…if you leave now. This won't exactly be very pretty. _It is best…if you go now. This is not very beautiful._

A translation of "Ah vous dirai-je Maman" can be found on Wikipedia. It's actually a very funny song.


	15. Honesty

HAY GUISE. Hope you had a good Thanksgiving.

First off, thank you for being patient with me through the evils of the chapters of ANGST. As a reward, I give you a chapter of FLUFF! Yeaaah. I loved writing this chapter. Fluff is my favorite thing to write.

With that, I give you Chapter Fifteen. Three-fourths through the story, gang. Three-fourths.

**Disclaimer: **Ah. It appears I forgot that I did not own Code Lyoko for a while. Sorry bout dat.

* * *

**Chapter 15  
**Honesty

"Uhm…"

Jeremie tripped over the last step, but caught himself against the wall. He eased out of the slight shock of the fall, and looked up at the second-story landing. Aelita, as one would predict, was there. She was standing outside her room, hand on the doorknob, but motionless, as though it were a major decision as to open the door or not. Her eyes were unfocused- she appeared to be deep in thought.

A shudder ran down Jeremie's spine as he looked at her. Cautiously, he got off of the stairway, and approached her. She did not respond.

"Um…hey."

Aelita turned her head, very slowly, in his direction. Her eyes widened a bit, but the rest of her body seemed to relax. "Hm?"

"Well…your dad…he said he wanted me up here, to…well…" His gaze trailed towards the ground.

To his surprise, Aelita followed him. She stepped a little closer, and looked towards his eyes. "Huh? Are you okay?"

"Yes, I-I'm-" He went a bit red, but Aelita didn't notice. Something caught his eye, and he looked down at her jacket. "You…there's blood…right there…" He pointed at the small splatters where Medea's blood had fallen.

"Oh…oh." She looked down at her jacket, and rubbed the spot gently. "I guess I should go change…"

"Yeah…maybe you should." He tried to smile through his nerves.

"Yeah…" She looked up at him, and an odd look crossed her face. "Um…well, you know, I'll kind of need some privacy, so…"

Jeremie didn't need anything else said. He opened the door, pushed her into the room, and then forced it shut behind her. He pressed his body against it to make sure it stayed shut, not necessarily because Aelita would open it again, or because it would help at all (the door swung the other way). It was mostly for his own mental security. He heard a small, metallic _click_ that told him the door was locked. With that, he relaxed, and sat down against the door.

Why had he been so frantic? Had it been the thought of Aelita…no, no, he wasn't that kind of person. He wiped his brow with his forehead, and took some deep breaths. There. Now he could think.

Well, he had hardly expected this. Just when he'd actually gotten used to having his day set back at the end, to reintroducing himself to the same people, this had to go and happen. He supposed that now was the end of the revisions- with Medea dead, a Return to the Past would be useless. But, he still had to go home…if he could somehow get away…finish the reverse-engineering before anyone could find out, and then leave the past nice and clean…

But for some reason, he felt something else pulling at him. He was intertwined in this past now. It was going to happen today, he knew it would. The events that would set off the greatest passion of his entire life were about to take place. But…was he just going to sit and watch the person he cared about more than anyone place herself in danger…even as she sat completely unawares?

He knew what he had to do.

The door gave way behind him, and he fell backwards onto his head. He looked up to find Aelita staring down at him, fully dressed in another copy of the same outfit. She arched an eyebrow. "It's not a very good idea to sit against this door…"

"I can see that," Jeremie replied, standing up as though nothing had happened. "Well…um, may I come in?"

"I suppose." She turned around, and walked across the room. "Just…keep the door open, okay?"

"You don't trust me." He cast a sarcastic look, and then walked in, and sat against her bed, placing his laptop bag on his left side. Aelita walked across the room, picked a doll- Mr. Pück, far as he could tell- off a a shelf, and then sat down on one of the physics textbooks strewn across her floor. She stroked the doll's cheek tenderly.

"Are you alright?" Jeremie asked, raising his eyebrows.

Aelita turned her head, looking at him with a subdued curiosity. "Yes. Thank you." She turned back to Mr. Pück.

They sat in silence for a long, long time.

"I'm sorry."

"What?" Jeremie snapped out of his unfocused stupor and whirled his head towards Aelita. She hadn't moved at all, but he had clearly heard her voice. Then, he heard a sigh.

"I'm sorry…" She turned her head, and then looked at the ground. Mr Pück began to slip out of her hands. "For being so pathetic. You know…back there…in the woods."

"What? No, no, it's okay." He made a move as though to stand, but nerves stopped him at the last minute, and he sat down again, huddled in an awkward ball. "You're not pathetic. Not at all." His gaze trailed off. "I'm loads more pathetic than you are...and you really were a lot braver than a lot of people. Braver than the principal, anyway."

"That's a pretty shallow achievement." She dropped the doll, and then, to Jeremie's surprise, stood, walked across the room, and sat by the other side of the bed, only slightly more than a yard from him. "I…I'm confused."

"About what?" Jeremie said. "You can tell me…if you want to."

She sighed, and looked away. "Everything, really. Everything that's happened today. It's like I said before. It's all happening too fast. I mean, I woke up this morning, thought I'd go out in the sun, go to the movies, wash the neighbor's cat…and BANG." She threw her hands up in the air. "My English teacher is dead, my dad's on the run from the police…and now he's acting all strange. Like…like he doesn't care."

She paused for a moment. "But what confuses me the most, really…" She looked up, right at Jeremie. "Is you."

Jeremie stared at her, and then, tentatively, pointed to himself. "Me?"

"Yes, you. You really, really confuse me." Her stare was piercing, begging for information. "You come to the school, unanounced, out of absolute nowhere. You've never spoken to me in your life, and yet you quite clearly follow me every chance you get, and show no hesitation in hauling me around. You seem to know my father. How do I figure this, you say? When two people are at the scene of a situation like that of a death, action should be swift for the care of the body. But there was tension between you. An air of antagonism that shouldn't have been there, especially between an adult authority figure and a guest child."

Jeremie had to focus intensely to stop himself from showing surprise. He honestly did not expect Aelita to be so observant. But, he hoped he was showing an expression of outward coolness, enough to hide his nerves. He nodded, as though egging her on through her interesting theory.

"Don't ever think I'm any sort of airhead. You are clearly more intelligent than you let on, and you're not telling me something. Where did you come from? What do you have to do with everything that's happened? Because I know you're a part of it. I know."

This was the moment Jeremie was waiting for. The moment of truth. He laughed, just a little, for dramatic effect, and a wicked smile wormed across his face. "Maybe, maybe, maybe. If two impossible things have happened today, who knows, maybe we can make it a round third." He returned her steely glare. "You're right. I did come out of nowhere. I do know your father. And I do have quite the story to tell. Amazing things are about to happen, Aelita. Not all good, not all bad, but definitely amazing. Your life is about to change."

Aelita's eyes grew wider with every word. It looked as though she did not know what to make of him. Leaning in so close her hair almost tickled his face, she asked, in a voice that was almost a whisper, "Who are you?"

"My name is Jeremie Belpois. I'm from the future."

* * *

Jeremie would never know exactly what Aelita had expected him to reveal to her. Perhaps she had had no concrete idea. But whatever she had expected, it was not what he had said. On instinct, she pulled away from him, flinching as far back as she could with her top half, but her bottom stayed rooted to the spot. She kept a straight face, amazingly, but seemed to be having trouble holding it. "Oh…r-really." The voice was half calm, half surpressed laughter. 

"Your father is a genius." He didn't answer her statement. "You know that old, abandoned Renault factory on the island in the Seine? Yeah. At this very moment, there is an enormous supercomputer sitting in its bowels, one more powerful than any built by any government, or any private maker. Your father, he built that supercomputer. He made it in secret, and works on it every afternoon after the teaching day. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if he had planned to work on it today, or if he still will.

"I'm from the year 2006. Two years ago…well, two years before then…I discovered his supercomputer when I was looking around the factory for scrap metal. The old elevator worked…but I didn't know that wouldn't be my only surprise." He laughed, bitterly. "And one day, I just got sent back in time by accident. I've been here ever since."

"And…that just sort of randomly…happened?" Aelita's eye twitched. She was taking in every word, but he could not tell if she was believing any of it. "This is…erm…normal?"

"Not exactly. Like I said, the supercomputer is very powerful. It can hack the most secure databases, solve the most complex problems…and it is the only device, even here, in 1994, that can reverse time. Bring it forward, I don't know. But it can reverse it, that's for sure."

Silence. He kept talking. "Yep. But that's hardly the half of it. You see, I barely scratched the surface of all the technological wonders the supercomputer holds."

"That…that is…" She sounded like she really didn't want to know.

"An entire world. A world made up of five different sectors, accessible through full-body scanners, designed to be the ultimate paradise. They call it Lyoko. You enter there…and all weakness is removed from you. You should be safe from harm. It should be a world without danger. Should be."

Aelita sat in silence for a tense moment. "Have you…ever been there?" she asked, finally.

"Once. Just…once." He sighed. "Maybe I should go more often, but, no…I have other matters to attend to."

"I…I see." She seemed to have the notion that she was treading on thin ice, ice that she was afraid would crack at any moment. She was terrified out of her wits. Just as Jeremie wanted it. She sighed…and then, tentatively, crept slightly closer, a newfound curiosity in her eyes.

"Do you know, perhaps…where I am in your world? I'd be twenty-five, wouldn't I? Do you know me? Live near me? What do I do for a living?" Her words were questioning, but were laced with a sort of mild sarcasm.

Jeremie stared at her still longer, trying to fight down his amusement- and his embarassment. "That would really be awkward."

"Awkward?"

"I do know you in the future. But, not really in the way you'd expect." He smiled, a small smile. "When I found the supercomputer, it wasn't just that I found an immensely powerful object, or a time machine, or a deprived world of escape. I also found…you."

Aelita's calm pretenses fell immediately. Her eyes bugged out of her head, and her jaw dropped. "...me? I…I don't really get what you're saying…"

"Yeah. If I'd heard it all the day before it happened, I would have said much the same." He backed away from her slightly, perhaps to make her more comfortable. "You see, you were…will be, I guess…trapped in Lyoko. While you were trapped in there, the supercomputer was turned off, and you went into a sort of hibernation for ten years. You didn't age…and…and you lost all your memories." He felt his voice straining, and tried to ignore it. He turned away from Aelita- though he knew the effect this would have on her, he couldn't bear to watch.

"I'm…I'm not anyone important, really…I was just a student over there at the boarding school when I found you. And I…well…I wanted to help you. I wanted to bring you back to the real world…so you could live a normal life." He shivered.

There was a long silence…and then Aelita spoke, eerily calm. "Why? Why embark on the impossible for a complete stranger?"

"Because…it's what you do, you know? You see someone in trouble…and you help them." His voice trailed off.

"You have quite an elementary sense of duty." A hollow laugh…and a tense pause. "Perhaps you know why I was trapped?"

"Well…" His throat froze. He knew exactly what he had to say, but the words couldn't come out. "I…" He mopped his forehead. He opened his mouth again, but no sound came.

"I see." More silence. This unnerved Jeremie, but the quieter he was, the better it would be. He just had to wait for another question to inspire him…

"So is the future really all it's cracked up to be?"

"Wha-what?" His head jerked, and he finally chanced a look at Aelita. None of the surprise he had expected, if it had ever happened, remained- she had fixed him with the same steely, prodding glare. He gulped. "What do you mean?"

"Flying cars? Cities in the clouds? Robots doing everything for us? Perhaps…internet without dialup?" Her eyes narrowed.

"That's…not really, yet…that's just movies and stuff, you know…" He laughed nervously. "Except that last part…"

Her eyes still bored a hole in his flesh. "Nothing? Nothing's happened at all, hm? Sounds very…present day."

A muscle twisted in his stomach. He hadn't thought this part through. "Well, yes, many, many things have happened, of course…just not overly in the Hollywood fashion."

"I suppose that could be true," she said. "It's just…I guess you know that time travellers don't just drop in every day."

"Yeah. It isn't something that can just be supported with words. Tell you what-" He spied his laptop bag, still set against the bed. He crawled over to it, grabbed it, and then repositioned himself, holding it up. "See this? I brought it with me. It's full of stuff from the future. Want to see?"

Aelita's muscles relaxed slightly, and she backed away, but her eyes were still at the intensity of diamond cutters. "Is any of it…dangerous?"

"Oh, no. I left the spaceship and ray guns at home." She rolled her eyes- she had obviously gotten the sarcasm. "But, really, the most I could do with any of this is hit you over the head with it. Which…I'm not. But, look." He opened the bag, and pulled out his laptop.

If Jeremie was expecting enthusiastic belief at this, he must have been utterly dissapointed when Aelita did nothing but arch an eyebrow. "It's…a computer."

"Yep!" He tried to make up for her lack of enthusiasm. "In 2006, computers do almost everything. They're an information database, they're one of the main means of communication, they help immensely with word processing and accounting, and, of course, they can be used as toys by _some _people…want me to turn it on and show you?" He placed it on the ground, and flipped its cover up.

Aelita didn't answer. She just crawled around, facing the back of the computer, and poking its cover. "It's so…small."

"Oh, they can get smaller. Wanna see?" He abandoned the computer for the time being, and dug into his bag again. After a time, he fished out his cellphone, and held it up to her, smiling widely. She looked at it for a moment…

"A pager." She was again unimpressed. "So."

Jeremie looked down at the phone, and then back at her, in obvious disbelief. "Uh…no. This is a cellphone. What's a pager?"

The incredible look of disbelief that Jeremie had been waiting for finally came across Aelita's face. She surveyed the phone again…and then she snatched the phone out of his hands, and turned it over and over. "No way! This is a cellphone? It can't be…it's too…small. I mean, I've seen cellphones…and they're all…all…" She looked up at him, almost angrily. "How in…how did you get one?"

"Everyone has one. Usually, you get your first in sixth or seventh grade." He was enjoying this a lot. "And it does more than call. It has its own built in answering machine, it can send and receive text messages, take pictures, hold music…and I'm not even sure if mine can do all of that."

Aelita pressed a button. Several bars of music told him that she had turned the phone on. She pressed several buttons enthusiastically, eyes going wider with each press. "Awful confusing."

"Yeah. It's the fashion to have everything technologic do everything."

"I see." She pressed one more button, looked to the side at his bag…and then set the phone down. She crawled over to the bag, and picked up something that had spilled out of it- a one Euro coin. She exammined it with interest. "Is this…money?"

"Of course it's money! What'd you-" Just as suddenly as he was confused, he understood. "Oh, right, right! You guys still use Francs, don't you?"

Aelita turned her head towards him, confused. "_Still_?" she inquired.

"Yeah. A whole load of European countries switched to the Euro a few years back, because it's more convenient. France…Spain…Germany…not England, they still use pounds."

"Hm…" She looked it over again. "Interesting. Ah…"

She dropped the coin, which rolled around and fell over. She crouched down by the bag again, and seemed to have noticed something else- the small, colored corner of a photograph. Jeremie knew what this was, and didn't know why he hadn't thought of it before.

She pulled the photograph out of the bag, and looked at it with interest. Jeremie knew it was a picture of him and his friends. But to Aelita, the people were strangers. Three of them, at least. The shy, mild-looking boy with the mousy brown hair…the crazy blonde girl making bunny-ears over his head… the Chinese girl looking on at them in amusement…she didn't recognize any of them. Smushed in a corner were two others. One was, of course, the boy that sat right behind her. He was smiling, blushing, and holding the hand of another smiling, laughing girl. A girl with short, pink hair and a kind expression…one very familiar.

"Me," she mouthed.

"I forgot that photo was there." Jeremie crawled over to her, and looked over her shoulder at the picture, though still trying to keep at a comfortable distance. "Yep. That's me and my friends."

"I see…" She surveyed the portrait, trying to make sense out of it. She pointed at Odd. "Why does she wear her hair like that?"

"_He_." Jeremie snorted into his hand. "I don't really know. He just likes to be different, I guess." He tapped his head. "That's Odd, by the way. Odd Della Robbia. He's a little weird…and a little irritating…" He rolled his eyes. "But we like him all the same."

"Hm…I like him." She smiled at Odd's unmoving face. "He seems so full of life."

"That's Odd for you. He has enough life in him for about six people, and it'd be better off in them."

"Shut up." Her eyes scanned the picture again. "And the other guy and the Chinese girl?"

"'Yumi Ishiyama' would not be very happy if she heard you call her Chinese. But still, she's cool. More mature than any of us. And that guy is Ulrich Stern. Grouch if you ever saw one, but he's useful."

"Ulrich?" She giggled a little. "Very German name…" Inevitably, her eyes trailed towards the couple in the corner. She smiled at them. "And who's that ugly little boy?"

"Not in the picture." He laughed, and then recomposed himself. "Yeah, that's me. And the girl…"

"Is me. I know." She stroked the face of her future self, thinking. "I look so happy… and…I'm going to know all these people?"

"More than know them." Jeremie looked away from the picture and sat down. Aelita looked at him, anticipating another story. "They're your friends. My friends. They know about the supercomputer as well. They've been to Lyoko many more times than I have. We're all fighting for your freedom."

"Fighting?" Aelita was intrigued now. She kept hold of the photograph. "Fighting against who?"

"A program in the computer…an artificial intelligence, a virus of sorts…that doesn't want to let you go." His voice darkened with contempt. "But it's not just that he wants. He wants to take over the world, and he does have the means to do that. We're trying to make sure he doesn't…and that he doesn't hurt you at all. That's what we're most concerned about." He looked at the ground, nervous.

He felt a small pat on his shoulder, and he looked up. Aelita was sitting right beside him, almost touching him, looking at him with a new kind of curiosity- a kind, playful one. A shiver ran down his spine.

"Jeremie…" Her voice was nervous, strained. "I think I've seen enough that I can believe your little time-travel story…" She glanced back at the photograph, now lying on top of the bag. "But I just want to know one thing."

"Anything."

"Well…in this…future," she said, pausing to take a breath, "Are we in love?"

In a more convincing statement than anything he could have said, Jeremie blushed deep crimson and buried his head in his knees. "Well, I, uh…maybe, it's just…well… um…um…"

"Um?" She giggled.

"Um…" A sigh. "I'm not really sure, actually." He looked up, eyes glazed and unfocused. "Aelita is…you…she's kind, understanding, patient…and yet still human enough for it to be balanced, for her to have common sense. She's wonderful. Too wonderful for me." Tears formed at the edges of his eyes, and his voice cracked. "I'm just…I'm just a useless technophile. I failed her so much…deserves better." Finally, he looked up at her, breathing heavily, trying to hide his tears.

"You…you'd be happier here with Chris, right? He's nice…good-looking…he'd be able to give you anything you'd ever want. He likes you. A lot." He choked, and shuddered.

"Chris…" She looked to the side. A second later, he felt a soft _flump-_ Aelita had placed her head on his shoulder. He shivered, but did not dare move.

"Chris is…nothing but a friend." Her voice was weary and tired now. "A good friend…but a friend nonetheless. I know he likes me. He makes it way too obvious. All males do. But to me…he's just a game I like to play. I see what little things I can do to get him going…to see him blush or stammer…and from that I get amusement."

"So…you egg him on, just because you're bored." He tried, still, not to look at her.

"Pretty much. No real feelings for him at all. Just another boy passing by…" Gently, she touched his chin, and turned his face towards hers. She gazed up into his eyes. He flushed crimson, and tried to hide his face again.

"I…forgive me, Aelita. I just…" He sighed, again. "Sometimes…in the forest, there…I forgot you weren't…"

"I wasn't the amnesiac princess you are accustomed to." She sighed as well, but somehow, with a bit of a lighter note. "Perhaps the only reason you are speaking to me at all, is because you know I will forget."

"You read into conversations very carefully. It's a…nice skill." He smiled down at her.

"My father does it all the time. I guess I just copy him." She stroked his shoulder lightly with her finger. "I've listened to everything you said…and I guess I can…appreciate it. Believe it, maybe, but appreciate it more. But, I'm scared. And still confused. I mean…why me? Why not someone more noble…more uncommon…"

"You're far from uncommon," Jeremie retorted. "And in a way…I'm scared. Scared for you. I don't…I mean…I've spent a long time trying to get her…you…away from suffering. So seeing this…being a part of it…it's…" He held his hand to his heart, and balled it into his fist. "Kind of painful."

He looked into her eyes, as she had looked into his. She did not hesitate, simply returned the calm glance. A spasm crossed his heart, and he felt his face flush anew, but he ignored it. He was too busy. "Ah…Aelita…"

"Jeremie…"

**SLAM.**

"Alright, come out of there!"

It took Jeremie about two seconds to register the noise. Aelita reacted more quickly than that- she leapt up, and gasped, her face going from a pale blush to chalk white in an instant.

"No…they can't…" She ran over to the window. Jeremie stood. From across the room, he could see what had troubled Aelita. A black car had pulled up to the Hermitage, and was parked sideways by a tree. In front of the house were two men in black suits, one bald, the other not. They looked, very, very angry.

Jeremie mumbled an expletive. "It's time. Call your father."

Aelita backed into a nearby dresser. She whirled to face him. "What? Now? But-"

"Those men. I'll bet anything they're after him. Call your father!" Hurriedly, Jeremie stuffed his computer, phone, and photograph back into his bag, and slung it over his shoulder.

"Uh…" Aelita shivered on the spot, and yelled with all her might. "Daddy!"

There was a crash from downstairs, followed by loud footsteps. The next moment, Franz Hopper ran into the bedroom though the open door. His expression still seemed resolutely calm, but, then again, his eyes could not be seen. He looked from Jeremie to Aelita in a milisecond. "Mm?"

"The…the men in black are here…" Her eyes were wide, blank, silently probing for an answer. Franz seemed to see this.

"I know. Do you remember where Mr. Pück is?"

"Y…yes."

"Good." He turned around. "Come. We have to leave."

"Oh…yes…" She made to move-and then twitched. "Oh, wait!" Aelita pointed to Jeremie. "He has to come…doesn't he?"

Franz looked back at Jeremie for an agonizing ten seconds. Then, he laughed, short and fast under his breath. "Yes. As long as he doesn't slow us down."

"Uh, no, no, if I'm going to-"

"I know you won't. Now come on! Sooner or later they're going to get in." He ran back down the steps. Jeremie took a deep breath.

"It's now or never, Aelita. Don't worry…everything's going to be fine." With that, he ran down the steps after Franz Hopper, taking Aelita's hand and dragging her behind.

* * *

AWWW so very cute. 

Well, my favorite chapter, signed, sealed, delivered. Or perhaps my second favorite, depending on how the next turns out. Love you all,

-Carth


	16. Un Monde Sans Danger

…This…was a really hard chapter to write.

First, there was ANGST. Then, there was FLUFF. Now…there is FLANGST. The crazy combination of both fluff and angst, which I hope you will like!

And I'd love to thank you all for your very enthusiastic reviews! I appreciate them muchly. Oh, just remembered something. As you may know, there's that new feature where you can put polls on userpages. Well, I have one up. As you may have guessed, I don't plan to stop writing after RTTP is over. Thing is, I have four ideas I like. I have a good idea of what I'm going to do next, but I want to know what you think of my ideas. Just cause…cause. There's a link on my userpage, and summaries further down. You can vote if you want to.

Enjoy the show. There may be a slight delay in the next- I have exams very, very soon.

**Disclaimer**: Je n'ai pas Code Lyoko. D'accord? Bien.

* * *

**Chapter 16  
**Un Monde Sans Danger

"_Hey! Come back!"_

They came to a halt at the bottom of the stairs. The men in black were there inside, tall, terrifying. They could not afford to be frozen in fear- after a split second's glance, they hurried down another set of stairs, leading to a sort of basement.

"_Freeze or we'll shoot! Yes, the children too!"_

The basement was dark, claustrophobic, and foreboding in such a situation. At the end, there was a door that seemed to lead outside. Franz pushed Jeremie and Aelita through first, and then shut the door behind them. He grabbed a wooden board and jammed it against the handle. "It won't help," he said under his breath, "But it's a start."

He ran to an opposite wall, and felt around for something. Eventually, he found it- a small, steel door, almost unnoticable unless one was looking for it. He pulled its handle, and it swung open to reveal a long, thin, earthen tunnel of sorts. Jeremie's breath caught in his throat- he knew where it lead.

"Through here." Franz disappeared down the tunnel. Having no forseeable or sensible alternative, Jeremie and Aelita ran through after him, still keeping a firm grip on each other's hands. He heard a loud _bang_ as the door swung shut behind them.

Just as he had known it would, the tunnel soon ended, leading out to a wider space, all chrome and steel. The sewers. When they reached the end, they jumped out of the passage, and followed Franz's lead on the hauntingly familiar path.

Aelita let out a frightened squeak behind him. He looked back at her, and gave her a comforting smile. "I told you, it'll be okay." He turned his eyes back on the path. He might miss a turn if he didn't pay attention. And then he and Aelita would be drenched in sewer water. Not pleasant.

All too soon, they reached the grate, the end of the sewer passage. Nothing was there except a ladder and a manhole entrance. Franz got to it before they did- he climbed up the ladder, removed the manhole cover, and disappeared through the resulting hole. Taking the hint, Jeremie began climbing, and beckoned Aelita to follow.

The sudden sunlight was harsh on his face. He was on the all-too-familiar bridge to the factory. In the distance, he could hear the sirens at the school. A thought occurred to him as he climbed out. He straightened, shouting towards Franz, who was running across to the factory entrance. "Uh, hey- won't people be able to see us here?"

If Franz had heard, he showed no signs as such. He simply ran to the edge, grabbed hold of a rope, and shimmyed down. Jeremie couldn't waste any time thinking about it any longer- he helped Aelita out of the manhole, ran with her across the bridge, and swung down from the ledge. She followed after him, sliding down her rope fearfully.

They reached the elevator just as Franz was punching in the code to unlock it. The party was still silent. Aelita looked around the area wildly, as if searching for something that could resemble a supercomputer of sorts. She let out another squeak as the elevator opened, but that was it, at least, until they had stepped inside the elevator and it was moving.

"Okay…this elevator is really old…the cables are probably worn through…" She laughed, nervously. Jeremie tried as hard as he could to resist rolling his eyes. Franz remained motionless.

The elevator, whose cables were not as worn through as one might think, stopped where it should have, and opened smoothly out into the interface room. Aelita gasped once, and then was still, except for her eyes, which had widened considerably. Jeremie shuddered. Franz didn't waste any time. He ran across to his chair, swung around into it, and booted up the interface with several loud beeps, followed by the clacking of keys as he typed with fervor.

"Sholy hit," Aelita whispered beind him, barely audible, even to herself. "The crazy kid's right again…there really is this…this supercomputer thing…it's, this is…interesting…" Jeremie tried to ignore her. He merely gripped her hand tighter, looking the other way, nerves strung tight. "Ah…"

"Jeremie." Franz's voice split the tension in the air. "Come here." Jeremie gulped, and, rather reluctantly, he left his spot at Aelita's side and walked over to the terminal. Franz stared at him the whole way, though still typing without looking. As he approached, he leaned towards him, and spoke, his voice a harsh whisper.

"I don't know your plans," he said, "and personally, I do not care. However, I do know my plans, and seeing as I am the one in control of this shiny plastic box and you are not, my plans generally tend to take priority over yours. I'll finish this. I'll take my daughter, go through that elevator, and magically disappear. You wait here until you think it's safe, and then you _go_. I don't know if they saw your face or not, but you never know with those damned sunglasses…"

"You're hardly one to talk." He heard a soft noise behind him. What was Aelita doing?

Franz's eyebrows narrowed. "I don't have time for this, boy. Here's your job. Stay there with Aelita. Keep her quiet. Don't answer any of her questions, and don't let her move from that spot. Tell her that I'll explain everything in due time." He shuddered, turned his head- and then jumped.

"I…I don't think I need much of an explanation."

Jeremie whirled around. Aelita was standing right by the chair, looking confident about something. Her eyes trailed towards the activity on the screen, and then snapped right back to her father.

"I know what's going on," she said, a bit shakily. "You built this. It's got a time-reverse thingy, and a virtual world, Loko or something or other. And…I'm going to be trapped there, or something. Is this true? I mean…" She shook in her spot. "It all seems so far-fetched…but with all this…"

Jeremie bit his knuckles to keep from commenting. He couldn't look at her, not without reacting somehow. Instead, he looked at Franz, who, obviously, was shocked beyond definition. He had stopped typing, and was sitting on the edge of his seat, mouthing soundlessly at his daughter. Hand shaking, he reached up, removed his opaque spectacles, and made a show of rubbing them on his coat. Their identical green eyes met, for one tense moment.

"How…in all blasted hell…did you know that?"

Aelita sighed. "He told me," she said, pointing at Jeremie without hesitation. He squeaked, and popped his hand out of his mouth. "And he told me a lot more, too."

Franz, blind as a bat, just kept staring in the same direction, eyes widening. "Wha-"

"You told him to tell me, right? I mean, there was no other reason he'd tell me." She cast a sideways glance at him. "He says that he's from the future. Do you know him?"

Franz's eyes snapped towards Jeremie, or, perhaps, the blur he thought was Jeremie. Slowly, he repositioned his glasses, and his gaze became more intense. He stood, and his eyebrows narrowed. "A ha…well, well. So that's what you are." He laughed. "It's all clear now…"

Jeremie arched an eyebrow. "You believe me?" he replied, cool and smooth. "It took a bit of proof to convince Aelita…"

"I believe in many things, the least of which is proven occurences. Yes…" His voice lost a bit of its power- he seemed to be talking to himself now. "It could explain how you were able to enter my time loop…your unknown origins…your _advanced_ opinions…" He rolled his eyes.

"But you remember the Returns to the Past, an ability only obtainable through the scanners…because you make consious changes in the timestream each day." He twitched, and now focused himself entirely on Jeremie. "When are you from?"

"2006. March 10, specifically, sometime in the evening."

"The new millenium. Hm." He fingered his beard. "Are the-"

"No. Y2K is a myth."

"Thought so." Jeremie couldn't help but notice that his eyebrows had flown up in shock for a split second. "And the supercomputer…"

"Safe as ever."

"Very well." He laughed again. "Fancied a little game with obsolete technology, I suppose…wanted to take it apart and see how it works…"

"If I took it apart, I'd be destroying the most advanced computer as of yet." Jeremie smiled, amused. "It isn't common what this hunk of metal can do. Time reversal? Unheard of."

There was a small cough. "Time…reversal." Aelita finally spoke up from her spot by the chair, quietly, but still with confidence. "You…Jeremie… mentioned that…that the computer could do that…what do you mean, 'remember' the Returns to the Past?"

Franz glared at her. She whimpered. "Just…wondering…"

Jeremie gazed at her forlornly, and then back at Franz. "She has the right to know."

"Everything?"

"Everything."

"I thought so." Franz reached for his glasses again. "I was going to tell her everything…but time…is so short…" He grabbed the rims of his lenses, but before taking them off, he looked at his daughter. She glowered back at him, as if willing him to speak. It should have been tense, had he not faltered immediately. He sighed, removed his glasses, and turned in the other direction.

"I don't know exactly what Jeremie told you, or what he knows. But he is right. It's already old news that this computer has the ability to reverse time. I did not invent it myself. It was a sort of side effect of its creation, too complicated to explain to a child. Convenient, however…it gave me all the time I needed. I could reverse a day, make progress on the supercomputer, and no one would know. This day alone I've reversed 2,546 times."

"2,546 times?" Aelita looked a mix of confusion and mild horror. "And you said you can remember them…because of…scanners…?" She looked towards Jeremie, curious. "And you, you too…"

"It's happened six times already since I got here." He tried to offset his statement with a smile. "You kinda get used to it after a while."

"I guess that's an explanation." Her voice and face again assumed an air of quiet disbelief and deep thought. "So you are saying, that everything, everything that's happened today…has already happened about three thousand times."

"You're half right. Each revision has been identical, up until about 3:15 this afternoon. What happened then?" Franz replaced his glasses, and began to meander his way back to the supercomputer chair. "Medea Delmas died."

Aelita gasped. "You mean, she didn't die in the other day thingies?"

"Of course not! Do you think I'd want to experience anything like that more than once?" He slipped into the chair, and started typing again, pounding the keys rapidly. "Her death was proof of what I have suspected all along…something else has broken into my little bubble of time…something malevolent and dangerous. Something that can remember the Returns to the Past as we do."

Jeremie opened his mouth, as if to interrupt, but Aelita got there first. "But if you can just do the day over, can't we just do that, and somehow try and get Medea away from her house? Then she wouldn't have died, and everything would be okay! Wouldn't it?" She smiled.

Franz gulped, but attempted to keep focused on his typing. "You only seem to have absorbed about half of what I said. Whatever killed her is as independent of the time revisions as you are dependent on them. Reversing time would only give this malevolence another chance to act, and endanger us further.

"And even if that were taken out of the equation…" He hesitated. "The Returns to the Past do not affect the dead. I don't know why…but if I were to press these few little buttons right now, and reverse time just once more, she would simply drop dead at the point of revision." He laughed darkly. "How do I know this? I have used rats to test the scanners. Many have died. None have come back to life.

"In any case, it is now or never. Time is no longer infinite, and we cannot afford to waste a single second. No more questions." He focused himself intently on the supercomputer, blocking out all else.

"But- but-" She reached a hand out to him, as if that would help. "There's still so much to know…" Looking defeated, she stepped away, toward Jeremie. She gazed at her father for a moment, and then spoke, in a whisper. "Jeremie. What else do you know about the supercomputer? Like…why exactly was it created?"

He was taken aback for a moment, but composed himself, and laughed. "You're just endlessly curious, aren't you? Well, I'm not sure I know more than your father…" He shrugged. "But I do know some things. It's got something to do with this thing…Project Carthage or something or other…some government thing that disrupted enemy communications or something…" His voice lowered to a mumble as he spoke.

"Disrupted enemy communications." Jeremie did a double take. Franz didn't appear to have talked, but he had definitely heard his voice. "That's about as general as definitions can get." He groaned. "I told you not to answer any of her questions."

"Enemies…" Aelita's curiosity truly was endless. "What enemies? Daddy, what did you do? Are the men in black-"

"Nobody, nothing." He banged on the keys still harder. "It's not necessary anymore…" he began to mumble to himself. "They don't realize what they're doing…I'm the only one that knows the truth. I must defend this as long as I can…this and the others I care about…"

"How-" Aelita began to say, but was interrupted. Franz banged his fist on the keyboard, and growled.

"Questions, questions, questions! You're only delaying your own salvation, interrupting me, preventing me from finishing what will well save our lives…"

Aelita squeaked, and took a step back. Jeremie watched her, eyes wide. He felt a surge of anger towards Franz for the force of his words. But, this was quickly surpressed by the memory that he, himself had said nearly the same thing to Aelita many times before. He didn't like to see himself in this man. He didn't like to see Aelita suffer for no reason any longer. He had to try again to make things right.

He took a deep breath, and took a few steps toward the chair. "Save your lives, hm? You really believe that, don't you? You really don't think you're going to suffer."

Franz didn't move an inch. Perhaps his eyes had moved, but he didn't take off his glasses again. "Do you have any…opinions to the contrary?"

"I don't have opinions, I have facts," he retorted. "Remember, I'm from the future. I know exactly what's going to happen to you." Franz opened his mouth as if to cut him off, but Jeremie kept talking. "Okay, sure, you're going to escape, and get to Lyoko. But you're going to be trapped there for ten years, by a virus in the computer, named XANA. He-"

"_XANA_?" Franz covered his hand with his mouth to keep from laughing. "You, you can't mean…" He swung around in his chair, facing Jeremie, as though he had to see him to take him seriously. "XANA is merely a harmless computer program, whose sole purpose is to keep Project Carthage under wraps. He has nothing to do with Lyoko, and Aelita and I-"

"You're convincing yourself more than you're convincing me," Jeremie retorted. "With every revision of time, every second that goes by, XANA gets stronger. Maybe that was your intention, but it's gone too far. He's developed a mind of his own, and he's aware of himself. He wants to destroy you…destroy everything." He clenched his fists.

"It was XANA that sent me back in time. I guess he was trying to get rid of me, since I was the only one who knew how to work the supercomputer. It's just a stroke of sheer luck I landed here. Who knows? I could be partying it up with the cavemen right now!" He waved his arm in the air to demonstrate his point. "Aelita, you…you're all in a lot of danger, and you'll just get into even more if you enter Lyoko!"

There was no sound from the area where Aelita stood. Franz's face twitched. "Are…are you trying to-"

"I've already tried to discourage Aelita by telling her everything I could. I don't know if it worked, but listen to me now. If you really want to live, you'll destroy the supercomputer, and book it out of here. Go anywhere. Just stay safe…okay?"

He forced a large, nervous smile. Franz's expression was blank. With some creaks from the metallic seat, he stood. He glared in Jeremie's general direction, grey slates revealing nothing. When he finally spoke, his words were laced with sarcastic poison. "And I assume by 'you'…you mean Aelita."

Jeremie didn't respond. Franz snickered.

"Now," he continued, "I am going to go ahead and go by the assumption that you truly are from the future, which I am completely willing to accept, based on my own experiences with time travel. I am also willing to believe everything you have said about XANA. However, if you are still under the impression that you are going to be an amazing hero by convincing me to change your own past, I'm afraid I'll have to give you some very sad news. You may have almost made a very, very, very stupid mistake."

"Oh, really? What kind of mistake?" His hand clenched into a fist by his side.

The grey-haired man laughed darkly. "In science, the independent variable controls the entire outcome of an experiment. If the independent variable is changed, the outcome changes as well. Your variable is your actions, and your outcome is your future. What your experiment is missing, however, is a hypothesis." He leaned against the chair. "What do you predict will happen, exactly, if I am to make this-" He gestured towards the supercomputer- "-cease to exist?"

Jeremie cringed. Franz sighed. "I am not for or against you. If anything, I'd want another option…any other option." He cringed. "I simply want you to think this through. Changing the past requires a bit more thought than ordering one's lunch."

"Haha." Jeremie's face remained cold. "But isn't that what you've been doing? Changing the past without a thought? I bet you've been having a lot of fun, testing your own little hypotheses and outcomes…"

"Maybe." His hands twitched. "But you have the materials for only one experiment. Answer my question."

"I…" His other hand tightened. He was a bit stuck. "I think that the world will be better. XANA won't be trying to take it over, and Aelita would be free to do whatever she wanted…she…she'd be free." He smiled, but it was hard. Too hard.

Franz smiled, too, but his was less forced, and more antagonistic. "Is that what you think will happen, or what you really want?"

"Um…" A bead of sweat formed on his forehead.

"As much fun as this might be for you, it's not really getting anything done."

Franz made a small nose of surprise. Jeremie whirled around- he had nearly forgotten that Aelita was there. She had walked a bit closer to him, and was twisting her hands in her lap, though her face was cold and serious. She took a deep breath.

"It's time that you should stop wasting time trying to outwit each other and start thinking logically. Jeremie, you want to destroy the supercomputer?"

"Uh…" He cupped his hand to his mouth in a pathetic attempt to hide his nervousness. "Yes? No…?"

She ignored him. "And if I'm right, the supercomputer generated the time reversal that sent you here?"

Jeremie nodded weakly. Aelita continued. "If my father was to destroy the supercomputer, and we were to run away somewhere, then you never would have found it in your future. That, I think you knew. But, you also would have never been sent back in time by it, and you never would have caused its destruction. So, it wouldn't have been destroyed, and you would have found it, meaning that you would have been sent back in time, and you would have convinced us to destroy it- no, wait-" She groaned. "Long story short, you'd be trapped in a bottomless paradox. It's almost as bad as if you had prevented your own existence."

"Ah…" He blushed deeper. "Well…you don't have to destroy it…just abandon it, and I'd still…"

"You mentioned that the only reason you were still fighting XANA was to free me," she continued. "If you'd found an empty supercomputer and found out there was a malevolent virus in it- and nothing else- you'd probably turn it off and report it to the police, right? They'd destroy it, or send it to a lab for study. And then, the paradox returns." (Franz, noticing that the current conversation did not need any of his input, snuck back to the computer and continued working.)

Jeremie twitched. "You…you're right." His eyes widened. "But, how did you figure all of that out?"

"I get bored sometimes." Her face was unsettlingly calm. "And I'm not done. You said that I would have a better life without the events that have happened in your future. I'm not too sure about that." She sighed. "You told my dad and I to run. Well, we would run. We'd be running for the rest of our lives from the police, changing our names, hiding from anyone that might recognize us… And then, if Daddy was caught, as he most likely would be, there would be an amazing amount of trials and legal procedures, aside from all the terrible stuff that those men in black might do to him. On top of it all, he'd probably lose his parental rights. I would probably be taken away, shunted around foster homes for the rest of my childhood, abandoned at some bus stop at age eighteen, and found dead in a cornfield five years later."

Jeremie's blush disappeared abruptly, the hot feeling assembling somewhere around his throat. He had never, ever thought exactly of what Aelita would do with the rest of her life. He had almost forgotten about Franz's murder charge. He couldn't find any words to express any of this to her.

"Besides…and, well, stop me if I'm being selfish…" Her voice had a nervous tone now- she sounded a bit like Jeremie. "In your future, even if I do have amnesia, I suppose that I'm mostly safe…and I'm happy. I seem to have friends…and, you, I guess." She smiled. "And you're all so brave and willing to help. I should be happy for that. And you're going to succeed. I'm sure."

The hot feeling exploded, coursing through Jeremie's body like sugar. He blushed again. "I-I'm sorry…I just wanted things to be better for you…better than I could ever make them…"

He felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked up, and met Aelita's eyes.

"You've been very brave, Jeremie. As much as you try to hide it, you're going against some of your greater desires right now. You want me to be in your life…unless that's a little too bold to say…" Jeremie shook his head. She continued. "I'm not afraid to enter Lyoko, not at all. I want to meet you again. I want you to have another chance."

She relaxed her grip on his arm, and took a few deep breaths. "Phew…that was a bit awkward…I just hope I made some sense. Jeremie? Jeremie?"

Jeremie didn't respond. His blood felt like fireworks bouncing through his system, and he was shaking, almost vibrating. His face, though shocked for a moment, broke into a wide smile. Aelita stood back a bit, looking apprehensive. "Um…are you okay?" she asked.

"I…well…" He didn't get any farther than that. An odd feeling came over him. Before Aelita could react, before he had a chance to think about what he was doing, he wound his arms around her, and pulled her up to his chest, close to his face. His face relaxed, and his smile grew warmer. His gaze lingered on her eyes for a long moment. She clenched her teeth, frozen in place by shock.

"Well…" he stammered, "If that's what you…what you really want…then I won't have to worry about you remembering _this_." He closed his eyes, leaned forward, and then, slowly, pressed his lips to hers. He felt her gasp, and then relax, melting into the moment with him. He didn't know how long he stood there with her, but to him, it was all too short.

Finally, more slowly, he released her. After catching his breath, something he had forgotten to do, he looked back at her face, unsure of what he would see. She did not look entirely as thrilled as he was- in fact, a bit more shocked and flustered. But, however faint, her smile was still there. "You're an awful kisser."

"Oh, really? Compared to whom?" It wasn't the best comeback, but it was the best he could do. He laughed, and kept smiling at her, stroking her cheek absentmindedly. Then, when he thought he was ready, he let her go on one side, and swung around in the other direction, facing her father.

For a man that had just seen his only daughter kissed by a near stranger, Franz's reaction was dead quintessential- he was rigid as a board, mouth open, eyes probably straining out of their sockets. As Jeremie watched, he raised his arm, an accusing finger pointing right at him.

Jeremie's smile grew so wide, it was straining his face. "A…haha…hahaha…ha…yeah."

Franz didn't move a muscle.

"Okay, okay, sorry…look, see, I'm stepping away from her…" He took his arm off Aelita's other shoulder and stepped away, leaving her standing by herself and looking very confused. Slowly but surely, Franz relaxed his hand and mouth, sighed, and then grimaced. "You could have warned me…"

"I'll keep that in mind." He promptly forgot. "Well, then…" He arched an eyebrow. "Are we ready or not?"

"I was about to _tell_ you-" There was now a tangible note of dislike in his voice- "-that I've finished with all necessary adjustments to the system. Lyoko is ready." He spoke now to Aelita. "Are you?"

"Absolutely." She gave him a thumbs-up, and then froze, as if remembering something. She looked back at Jeremie, a bit shyly. "But what about you? What's going to happen to you?"

"Well…" He rested his chin on his hand- he hadn't thought this far. "I suppose I could supervise the virtualization process…make sure everything goes well…" He nodded. "Yeah, I could do that." He meandered towards the computer chair, and towards Franz. "Of course, if that's okay with you…"

Franz raised an eyebrow at him, but gave him what was unmistakably a nod. Jeremie smiled back at him. "Good. And you?" He looked back at Aelita.

"I suppose, but…that wasn't really what I meant." She looked at the ground, biting her fingernails. "It's just…how are you going to get back to your own time? You weren't sure if you could bring time forward…"

"Uh…" He racked his brain for an excuse that would pacify her. "Once you're safe, I'll try and set up a program to reverse-engineer the Return To The Past…try to replicate what XANA did to me, but in reverse."

"And…you're sure you can do this."

"Yeah." Of course, he thought to himself, he had attempted this before, with known results. But, he didn't want to burden her with such trifles. He hopped into the chair.

As he did, another train of thought struck his current one dead- these moments were Aelita's final ones in her own mind. He tried to keep this in his head and away from his mouth.

"Everything's going to be alright, okay? Trust me." He smiled, reassuringly. "I know."

Aelita smiled back, blushed, and backed towards the elevator door. Franz groaned. Not leaving him out, Jeremie swiveled the chair his way, his smile evolving into a sneer. "Well…seeya."

"Hmph," he grunted. He walked over the elevator door and entered its code. It opened with a flourish and lots of metallic noises. He sighed. "Ah…thank you. I think."

"Don' mention it." He smiled again, smugly, and waved at them. Aelita waved back enthusiastically, while Franz ushered her into the elevator. He followed behind her, and pressed the button that closed the elevator. As it shut, over the noise, Jeremie thought he could hear Franz speaking.

"Don't listen to him, Aelita…I'll take care of it. After today, you're going to be in a world without danger. Without _any_ danger. We won't have to run anymore."

The doors sealed themselves. A popup on Jeremie's screen showed the elevator moving down one floor…and then stopping. He sighed, swung around, and strapped on the communication microphone he knew was there. He was home now, as close to home as he could get.

* * *

"Okay, you see one of those big cylinder things, Aelita? You step inside, and then I virtualize you. Understand?" 

There was a small, frightened noise on the other end. "Um…I guess so."

"Don't worry, Aelita, it's perfectly safe. The new calculations I made should stabilize them enough to accept human virtualization." There was a metallic thud- Franz had stepped into a scanner.

"I…I guess." There was another metallic thud.

"Okay, Jeremie, we're ready." These were the words Jeremie had been waiting to hear. He typed frantically onto his keyboard. "Got it. Beginning virtualization programs …closing scanners…"

"Okay. I…I'll see you in a minute, Aelita." There was a loud _clang_.

"Alright, Daddy." Another _clang_. Two cards showed up on Jeremie's screen, two people ready to be virtualized. Now, came the easy part. He began to type out the very familiar sequence-

"Transfer, Franz. Transfer, Aelita. Scanner, Franz. Scanner, Aelita."

"…Virtualization."

* * *

_Well, look at this._

_I fail in my strength, and here they come, to give themselves over to me in my weakness._

…

_Oh, happy day.

* * *

_

Phew.

Well, that wraps it up for this chapter. Biya, seeya soons.

- Carth


	17. Meanwhile, Back at the Interruption

Hi guys! Hope y'all had a merry Christmas or whatever you celebrate!

With this chapter, we have the final result of…THE PRESENT DAY SUBPLOT! YAAY! I'm not good at writing action sequences, so…yeah. This was a _really_ hard chapter to write. Thanks for your patience. And thanks to everyone who voted in the poll!

**DISCLAIMER!: **"I love you, you love me, CL is not owned by me…"

* * *

**Chapter 17  
**Meanwhile, Back At The Interruption…

_Wrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrroooooooooooooooommmmmm…._

"Aelita, why is the engine making so much noise?"

"Because it's working, of course! We don't have time for these kinds of questions." Aelita groaned, exasperated. She looked down over the Replika that they had just entered. It was indeed the smallest Replika she had ever seen- it had only one, desertlike plain, with a tower at one end. It would have been rather quaint, almost kind of cute, if it hadn't been covered with monsters of every shape and kind, looking up at them like they were something delicious to eat. There was no doubt now that this was their stop.

"Ok…there's the tower. Now we just have to land properly." She pressed a few buttons, and moved her controls downward, turning the Skid towards the plain.

The monsters, though stupid, didn't waste a minute. As soon as the Skid was within firing range, they scrambled to follow it, sending a barrage of red lasers into the sky as they went. Fortunately, they were all focused in one direction, and the Skid, being faster than the lasers, was able to avoid them by simply swerving sideways.

Finally, Aelita brought it to a halt at the western edge of the plain. It was halfway between the northern edge and the tower, and in the most isolated spot possible. The monsters, realizing their target was no longer in sight, began moving closer to it, their laser paths pivoting across the sky like a lawn sprinkler. Judging from their speed, the gang had about fifty seconds to spring into action.

"Okay, here we go." Aelita jammed several different buttons on her interface. One by one, with a small crackle, the warriors disappeared from their pods. To them, it felt as though they were melting out of the ship- which, in a way, they were. With another small crackle, they rematerialized on the ground directly in front of the Skid. The tangle of monsters, only a couple dozen yards away now, ran even faster. Ulrich glowered at them with distaste.

"With a friend in danger, we can't afford to waste any time," he muttered darkly, unsheathing his swords with a flourish. "Aelita, go directly to the tower. Don't worry about us." She nodded, though he couldn't see. "Everyone ready?"

"You already know the answer to that, good buddy!" Odd shouted with glee. He grabbed his wrist, Yumi opened her fans, and Aelita braced herself. There was silence for a split second, and then, on an unconscious, unanimous signal, they split. Yumi, Ulrich, and Odd ran in one direction, towards the monsters, and Aelita ran in the opposite direction, towards the tower. The battle was on, and they were ready for anything.

The monsters had split into groups. The Krabes, being fast and versatile, went straight in the warriors' direction. The Megatanks, having enormous lasers but not much in the way of movement, rolled towards the Skid. The Tarantulas split themselves between the two objectives. The warriors themselves, knowing that both they and the Skid had to be protected, stopped as quickly as they could to assess the situation.

Yumi took a swift glance at both parties, and shook her head. "Well," she remarked dryly, "How do you want to die, food poisoning or spider bite?"

"Eh…" Odd cast a manical glare at the Megatanks rolling away. "Being crushed by a bowling ball sounds more dramatic in the long run. But seriously, Yumi, lighten up. You know we're gonna win this, doncha? Here we go!" With a wild whoop, he ran for the Skid, throwing out random shots wherever he could. No one followed him. Ulrich stared after him for a moment, then gave Yumi an uneasy look.

"Well, I was never one for drama," he said. "C'mon, let's just lob their heads off and get it over with." He whirled towards the nearest Krabe. "Super sprint!" In a flash, he was yards away, jumping onto its head. Yumi gave him a small smile, then followed suit on a nearby Tarantula. Too easy, too familiar.

Aelita, thanks to her friends, found her way clear. The terrain was perfect- there weren't even any rocks to dodge. She tried not to let any thoughts enter her head as she ran, least of all any thoughts about Jeremie. It was just another tower deactivation, that was all…an unusually elaborate one. Almost…admirably so. But, still, it all seemed too easy, too convenient to formulate a plot around.

The tower was bare yards away…she could just touch its outer membranes…when she ran into someone, someone squishy and black. With a startled squeak, she bounced off of him, and landed on the ground in a heap.

A shadow covered her over. The person she had run into was now standing over her, laughing. He had dark hair, dark eyes, wore a dark spandex outfit, much like the rest of the warriors, and held an enormous buster sword. The largest difference between him and the rest was the eye-shaped insignia across his chest, and the wicked, hungry grin on his face. It was William, under XANA's possession.

" 'Ello there," he said, in a maniacally gleeful tone.

* * *

After two long years of practice, Ulrich was hardly intimidated by the monsters anymore. He knew their different fighting styles, and could conform his own to their specific weaknesses, like their blind spots. Once he was on the back of a significantly larger monster, out of their line of sight and fire, their main weapons were powerless. But, they could buck him off. Or, if they were feeling particularly intelligent, tag-team him, with another monster following behind, trying to shoot him off. In fact, that was exactly what was happening.

"Hey, watch it!" he shouted at the Tarantula, though he knew it would do no good. He dug his sword into its back to keep himself rooted, and ducked as lasers flew over his head. The Tarantula roared and ran in circles, trying to bend its laser-tipped arms back to reach him, to little avail. The Krabe following them tried to keep up, but could not. It ended up standing in one spot, firing lasers at the Tarantula whenever it passed.

A shout broke through his concentration. "Looking good, man, looking good!"

He whirled around in his seat. Odd, barely visible across the plain, was completely ignoring his four remaining monsters. He was jumping up and down, waving at his friend enthusiastically. Odd was an expert at making these kinds of situations a sort of game- he'd jump around, tease and taunt the monsters, and then devirtualize them with show-offy jumps and acrobatics. It was just like him to stop in the middle of a battle to make smart remarks.

He groaned. "Shut up and watch where you're going, okay?"

"Eh, whate-hey!" A stray Tarantula shot him square in the back, knocking him over. Ulrich couldn't resist laughing. Stupid Odd. He really had to heed good advice like his. Like Yumi always did. He'd bet anything that she, on the far end of the stretch, had already done in tons of monsters by now, doing the right thing like she always did. Always…

A large buck from the Tarantula he was riding brought him back from what might have been a very pleasant daydream. He grabbed his other sword and stood up, trying very hard to hold his footing, and was about to plunge his saber into the monster's eye when he heard a scream to his right, in the tower's direction. He did a double take. Aelita was retreating from something, looking defensive, with two balls of energy in her hands. And in front of her…a boy, slashing his enormous sword at her, pushing her backward. Ugh. Possessed or not, he despised William. The monsters could wait. This had to be dealt with.

He grabbed his first sword out of the monster's flesh, jammed the second into its eye ("Impact!"), and jumped off its back onto the ground as it flailed, screeched, and then exploded into nothing. Ignoring the other Krabe firing behind him, he ran towards the clash, both swords drawn. "Aelita!"

"Ulrich?" She whirled her head around, trying to keep one eye on William and the other on her friend. "Go back to the monsters, I can handle him! Energy Field!" She threw one of her pink balls of light at him, which he evaded easily.

"No, get to the tower," Ulrich retorted. "This is more important!" He was only six feet away now. He jumped up in the air, and pointed both his swords down at him. He was ready to make XANA-kabob out of his target.

Despite the situation, William looked completely calm. He just looked up, raised his eyebrows, and narrowed his eyes. "Oh, _please_."

In a flash, his sword was up; Ulrich's swords bounced off the makeshift shield, and sent Ulrich, who was still holding them, face-first into the ground nearby. But, large blows to the head rarely daunted him. He got up, managed to free one of his swords from the ground, and with renewed vigor, charged at his enemy. The blades met again, but this time, the fight was more standard- Ulrich struck, William blocked, William struck, Ulrich blocked.

Aelita, finally accepting that Ulrich could keep William at the very least distracted, ran for the tower once again. She had barely gone three feet before, predictably, a laser grazed her shoulder. She looked up. Standing directly over her was a Krabe- the very same Krabe that was following Ulrich before, though she didn't know that. She swerved to run away, but another Krabe, eager to help its brother, was right behind her. They might have looked threatening- if she hadn't been threatened by them so many times before. She just smiled at them- and raised her hands. "Energy Field!"

One field hit the first Krabe, but did not devirtualize it, while the other Krabe dodged the attack. Unabated, they kept running towards her, perhaps hoping they had cornered her. But, she had one more trick up her sleeve. Grinning, she made a show of waving her hand over the star on her wrist. Wings burst from her shoulders, and she flew up into the air, out of their reach in less than a second.

Odd, nearly unaware of the struggle across the plain, had recovered from his fall. He was back to business, or at least his definition of it. He'd already shot down one Megatank and one Tarantula, and had three monsters to go. A Tarantula was running for him- perfect. He gave a running start, leaped up, did a flip in midair, and shot a laser arrow in midflip, hitting the monster barely a centimeter from the eye. He didn't do much but annoy it, though, and it just charged for him faster. He gave it a sly smile, and let two more arrows fly. One missed, but one struck its mark.

"Sucker!" He laughed at the monster as it exploded, and then moved on to the next one.

Yumi, at a direct diagonal from Odd, was taking things much more seriously. She was still doing her acrobatics, of course, but they were all functional, not made for attention. In the middle of one flip, she let her fans fly at two Krabes that had cornered her- one impacted, causing the Krabe to explode, but the other vanished from sight. As she landed, she saw a torrent of light in her peripheral vision. Of course it had to fall into the Digital Sea, she thought. The other came back to her hand, though, so she was still ready to exact doom on the other Krabe.

Meanwhile, the swordfight between Ulrich and William had hardly progressed from the striking-and-blocking phase. No one tried any sort of special tactic or anything for a long time. Then, slyly and subtly as he could, William…stopped fighting. His jaw dropped, and he brought his swordless arm up, pointing at a spot slightly to Ulrich's left.

Ulrich looked at the arm for a split second, and then stared back at his foe in disbelief. "Ha ha ha. If you really think I'm going to fall for that-"

"Oh, but you just did." In the seconds Ulrich had been talking, he hadn't been focusing. Quick as a flash, William sliced through him; he fell to the ground, dissolving into little, metallic blue-white squares. One down. Perhaps if the possession had allowed William a bit more emotion, he might have stuck out his tongue at him. But, he had better things to do. Such as destroying the little pixie that was still flying above his head, dodging and firing at his henchmen.

The sound of the devirtualization caught Odd's attention, however. He whipped his head around, away from the Megatank he had been about to destroy, towards the tower. He saw three things- a flying Aelita, a laughing William, and no Ulrich. He figured out what had happened instantly.

"Ey, you!" Forgetting the Megatank, he ran for William. He grabbed his wrist as he ran, arming a laser arrow. "Pretty boy!"

Aelita noticed him before William did. She threw an Energy Field at the one remaining Krabe attacking her, whirled in midair, and shouted, "No, Odd, he's gonna-"

"Hm?" William glanced over at the sound of Aelita's voice, and saw Odd. He rolled his eyes. He held up his sword, and made a stance as though he were about to throw it at Odd. But, a second later, as though he had changed his mind, he straightened and threw it up in the sky instead. His wicked smile returned, as though he knew something that Odd didn't.

Odd stopped in his tracks, and arched an eyebrow at him, and the flying sword. "Hey, what the-"

He didn't finish his sentence. An enormous sheet of laser power cut across the landscape, devirtualizing Odd right where he stood. The Megatank, the one that he had failed to destroy, had fired while he wasn't looking. It looked quite proud of itself- it was rolling round and round the area, making satisfied squeaking noises. William chuckled at it. Two down.

_Clunk._

He felt a sharp knock against his skull, and whirled around. Aelita was floating a few feet behind him, holding the sword he had thrown into the air, and wearing a satisfied smirk. He groaned.

"Super smoke!" He thrust his hand toward the sword. It dissolved instantly into a smoky cloud, flew out of her grasp, and reformed solid in his hand. The smirk disappeared from her face, and reappeared on his. Then, his sword was flying, so to speak. He slashed at her any way he could, but she was always just out of reach. In retaliation, she threw as many Energy Fields as she could manage- but she was growing tired. It had been a long battle, and she had never used this many Energy Fields in one run.

_Twang._ Another laser wall burst from the Megatank, but missed its mark, cutting directly between William and Aelita, and splitting them momentarily. William was knocked to the ground, but not devirtualized. Aelita took the opportunity to fly as far up and away from William as she could. In the fight, she had been knocked several yards from the tower. She had to fly past this wall of death, and past William, to get to it. For now, though, all she could do was wait for the laser to recede…

"EEEEEEEEEEYAH!" There was a shrill metallic sound, then an explosion. The laser shattered immediately. Hopeful, Aelita glanced toward the Skid. The Megatank was gone. Yumi, still able to fight, was standing in its place, brandishing an open fan and looking menacing. She looked up at Aelita, and gave her a confident smile.

"There's just a Tarantula left, but he's no big deal. He's way on the other side of the plain. I'll just take care of him-" she gestured towards the unconscious William- "-and that'll give you clear passage to the tower."

Aelita nodded back at her. "Got it. But you might need some help." She looked up at the sky. "Ulrich? Anyone there?"

"Huh? Oh-" Ulrich's voice, like Jeremie's usually did, came out of some invisible place in the sky. "Yeah, I'm here. Just got back up."

"Is Odd with you?"

"Odd got devirtualized?" He mumbled an unnecessary expletive. "He's probably still down in the scanner room. What do you need?"

"We need a vehicle for Yumi." William's arm twitched. "Do you know how to bring those up?"

"Uh, not really, sorry…" he stammered. William groaned. A bead of sweat formed on Aelita's face. "I could try, but if I screw up…"

"Forget it then. She can take him down pretty easy- oh no." William began to stand up. "Gotta go."

"Good luck. Sorry there isn't much more I can do." He cut off. William stood up straight, looked around, and locked his eyes on Yumi. He grinned again. She grinned right back- and ran for him, throwing her fan as she went. "Aelita, go!"

This time, Aelita didn't waste any time with distractions- she flew straight for the tower. William, nimble as ever, dodged Yumi's incoming fan, but the resulting swerve gave him a clear view of the sneak. He hissed. Forgetting Yumi for the moment, he turned on his heels and ran for the tower. His sword was up, blocking any more prospective attacks from Yumi's one fan.

Aelita touched down about five yards from the tower. She hit the ground running- she didn't know how many life points she had, and she couldn't risk a loss. Though she didn't look back, she could hear William's heavy footfalls behind her, growing closer with every step. She had a head start, though, and she wasn't weighed down by an enormous sword. Before he could get to her, it was too late- she had entered the tower.

From here on out, the routine was straightforward. She walked to the center of the enormous symbol- one ring lit, two, three. Once she had stepped on the innermost circle, her feet lifted off the ground- not because of any wings, but seemingly of their own accord. She levitated a distance this way, before approaching a very familiar platform- the tower interface. She touched down, and pressed her hand against the semitransparent screen there.

**AELITA.** Access granted.

**CODE: **

…

Clik clik clik, clik clik.

**CODE: LYOKO**

"Tower…deactivated." She sighed in relief. The data processes within the tower slowly began shutting down. She smiled at them as they faded away. There was no further need to be in Lyoko now. With a slow, deep breath, she devirtualized herself.

* * *

Outside, the aura around the tower slowly faded from an angry red, to a calm white. Yumi smiled up at it. William scowled.

In anger and without warning, he whirled on Yumi. With a roar, he slashed at her stomach. She fell to the ground, dissolving, leaving a trail of squares behind her. He smirked. He watched the spot where she had lain, even long after she had disappeared.

"_Well, sir?"_ He heard a metallic clank- several of them. The one remaining Tarantula was approaching. It stopped by his side, and leaned on its front legs, head resting on its lasers. With another metallic whir, it glanced over at the empty shell of the Skid, the only remaining evidence of the warriors' presence. _"We, erm…lost. Again."_

"Maybe," he replied, disinterested. "But the tower meant nothing to me. Its job was done. This loss is nothing compared to our coming victories."

His smirk grew wider. "A sizeable aspect of their resistance has been cut away. Even now, I could see them struggle significantly without his guidance." He laughed darkly. "I hope he's being horribly tortured right now."

"_That would be good, sir."_ The Tarantula looked around. _"What should we do with their ship, sir? It looks like they've-"_

The Skid, previously still, began to tremble a bit. Then, without warning, it plunged into the Digital Sea. The Tarantula, startled, took a step back.

"_-abandoned it."_

William sighed. "I wouldn't expect that." He sauntered over to the edge of the plain, and sat down. "The humans do not leave anything behind. It's all a part of their…emotion of dedication." He picked up a sizeable rock. "I'm bored. Get me some Kankrelats."

* * *

"And…entering."

Aelita tapped some keys on the interface keyboard. From what she could see on her screen, the door to Lyoko had opened, and the Skid could enter. Using the arrow keys, she guided it through the exit arm, up through the digital sea, into Sector 5, and then to rest in its hangar. It was safe, for the moment.

She breathed a sigh of relief, and swiveled around, away from the interface, to face Ulrich and Odd. Until that moment, they had been sitting on the floor, counting the green chrome plates on the wall. "Mission accomplished," she said.

"Booyeah," Ulrich replied, with little enthusiasm. He punched the air.

"All in a day's work for us talented people." Odd grinned at her. He looked around. "Is Yumi here yet?"

"She's exited Lyoko…" She looked back at her screen. "She should be here any minute. Oh yes- there, look, the elevator's moving…"

Just as she spoke, there was a series of whirs and bangs- the elevator had arrived. A moment later, the door opened, and out stepped a very frazzled but completely alright Yumi. She smiled, waved at the others, wobbled over to the interface, and then collapsed beside Ulrich and Odd with a loud, heavy sigh.

"That was totally unnecessary," she groaned. "Devirtualizing me when he'd already lost. I could've done it myself with half the pain and twice the dignity." She laughed a bit- and then stopped. Her eyes widened. Thoughts flashed through her head. Abruptly, she sat up, and shook her head around wildly.

"Hey, uh, Aelita?"

"Hm?" She pressed a button sequence, and the computer began to shut down.

"Jeremie didn't come back, did he?"

Aelita tensed at the sound of his name. When she spoke again, her tone was icy- and shaky. "Erm…no. He didn't."

"But…" Now Yumi's voice was shaking. "If XANA activated the tower, and then did something to Jeremie with that tower…then if the tower was deactivated…wouldn't he just, you know, come back?"

They all sat in silence for a long, long time.

* * *

SCARY CIFFHANGER O.O

Haha. Well, I hope you still like it! Only three chapters to go after this. That's…really scary.

- Carth


	18. Forever

…Woah. I confused you all with that one, didn't I? Well, don't worry. It's almost the end. How much more confusion can there be?

For those of you that want to know, yes_, Jeremie does return to the present in this chapter._How? Look down the page…and read the chapter along the way. Or something. Uh. Yeah.

This chapter's in line with the events of the Season 3 ep "Aelita", so if you haven't seen that one, or haven't read a summary or something, this chapter might not make much sense to you. ("Aelita" isn't really readily available anymore, so..yeah.)

Thank you all again. (bows)

* * *

**Chapter 18  
**Forever

The oblivion faded, to be replaced by a short, electric tickling. Then a fall.

Aelita's temporarily strangled senses returned to her as she hit the ground- at least, something that closely resembled the ground- in a heap. She opened her eyes, and blinked them a few times as she adjusted her focus. She looked down. She was on a completely flat, green substance of some kind, which was somewhat spongy and porous to the touch. She scratched at it, and it came away easily in her fingernail. She stared at it.

Her fingernail. Her entire hand. She looked it over in a state of mild shock, and then touched her face. Her hand was still there, of course, but it looked…different. Unrealistic. Like it had been made into a cartoon. It was like a human hand, but at the same time, unlike it. She brushed it against the ground again. It appeared to sense the way her hand usually did, but it still looked odd.

The ground changed texture. Aelita looked over at what she had just touched, and raised an eyebrow in surprise. She was leaning against an enormous brown tree trunk. Looking around the area, she saw many more of these trees, all so incredibly tall, their tops were out of sight. They were scattered around a twisting path of land that appeared to be floating in midair, and seemed to use the trees as supports. But, then again, a few trees were not rooted to the ground, but somehow grew out of the void surrounding it. It was a bit unclear what they really were for.

So. Lyoko. Quaint.

"Aelita?"

A boy's voice snapped her out of her trance. She looked up at its source- the other void, at the tops of the trees. "Jeremie? What- where is your voice coming from?"

"I don't know, you tell me." He laughed, and spun in his chair. "Well, being more serious, I'm still out here, and I'm talking to you through a com-link between the supercomputer and Lyoko. Quite simple, really. Is your father there yet?"

"Oh, Daddy…no, no he isn't."

"Oh. I hope nothing went wrong with his virtualization process." There was a small pause. "Well? What do you think of Lyoko?"

"It's…well, it's a little confusing, but it's quite beautiful." She smiled, wondering if he could see.

"Glad to hear it. Have you taken a good look at yourself yet?"

"Um…no." On instinct, she looked down at her front. She arched another eyebrow. She was wearing some sort of…garment. It definitely wasn't what she had been wearing moments before, but she didn't know how to describe it. A…toga? With arm warmers? She shrugged. But, she liked it. It was like a Halloween costume, four months early. "I'm…interesting."

"Haha." Jeremie sounded somewhat hesitant- and then gasped. "Oh- I've got another green spot on my radar."

"And what does that mean?"

She could hear some typing sounds carrying over the microphone. "It means that your father should be-"

"I'm here."

Aelita whirled around towards the source of the voice, expecting to find her father. However, he wasn't there. Instead, a large, white orb was hovering in front of her, floating up and down on a steady rhythm. She hardly had any time to be shocked when another appeared- and then another, and another. Soon enough, the entire area was filled with about thirty of these luminous orbs, all in different sizes. Her jaw dropped, and she took a step back. The head orb, the one that had appeared first, moved forward. As Aelita stared at it, she realized the inevitable. She shuddered. "D…Daddy?"

There was a moment of tension. Jeremie broke it. "Huh? Franz? Are you there? What's going on? What's happening?"

"Nothing, Jeremie, calm down." The voice was definitely Franz's, and it had come from the head orb. It hovered closer to Aelita, and the other orbs followed. "Aelita, are you alright? Did the virtualization go well? Is your body functional?"

"Well, yes, of course." She nodded, tentatively. "But, what happened to _your_ body?"

"What do you mean, what happened to his body?" Jeremie cut in. "What's going on? Franz, talk to me!"

Franz ignored him. He was still talking to Aelita. "I think there was an error in my virtualization. My physical body didn't make it to Lyoko…or perhaps it has been evaporated completely." Aelita squeaked in terror. Jeremie began panicking again. "Gah, no! I'm sorry, Mr. Hopper, please forgive me, I don't know how this could've happened, I'll try and find out right away-"

"Jeremie, shut up and listen to me!" Jeremie quieted instantly. "I don't know how this happened either, but once everything has settled, I'll work to fix it. It's no big deal." He laughed coldly. "Perhaps the younger you are, the greater the chance there is of a successful virtualization."

"Oh…okay. Maybe that's it…" Jeremie didn't sound convinced. "But either way, you all have to be on the alert. I don't know if there are any monsters or other threats around, and Franz might be extremely vulnerable in this state. You copy?"

Franz didn't respond. Aelita smirked. "Of course, Jeremie. It all looks safe to me, anyway." She paced around the plot of green that she had been placed onto, stopping every now and again to examine a tree trunk. They all looked exactly the same, but she examined them anyway. "Hard to believe that this is all just a computer program, really. It looks so…lifelike."

"You have your father to thank for that." On the outside, Jeremie was leaning on the sides of the keyboard, smiling at the screen. "He's the real genius here."

"Mm." Franz didn't appear to want to talk at the moment. Although he no longer had a face to discern emotion from, it was clear that he was deep in thought. The balls of light that appeared to form his soul began to emit a low hum, a slow, mournful sound.

"I think I've already been convinced that he's a genius," Aelita replied, with a bit more enthusiasm than her father. "Or, at the very least, stubbornly dedicated." She began stroking one of the trunks, and her mind began the slow trek to elsewhere. Unconsciously, she glanced over at a nearby path. She twitched back into reality instantly when she saw what was there.

Three small, stubbly brown creatures were scuttling towards them at an unusually high speed. They had roundish bodies, like potatoes, except that they had legs, and a small red mark on their abdomen. They had an odd symbol on their heads- an eye? Aelita couldn't tell. But, they were fascinating- and kind of cute, much more so than tree trunks. She turned towards them. "Daddy, Jeremie, there are some creatures…"

Their response wasn't what she had expected. Jeremie screamed, "KANKRELATS!" at about the same time that Franz shouted, "RUN, AELITA!" She stood confused for a moment, until a sharp pain in her leg told her the reason for the panic- the Kankrelats were advancing on her, firing lasers out of their red marks. She screamed, and tried to run, but shock froze her to the spot. Behind her, something, or someone, howled.

"AELITA!" Something swift grabbed her off the ground, and carried her through the air in the opposite direction. She gasped. She couldn't feel or see what was holding her- she could only see the trunks of trees whooshing by- but she could hear a low murmur in the back of her ears. She closed her eyes in an attempt to combat the vertigo, and kept them shut for the rest of the flight.

A light tingling shook her as she flew. Two seconds later, she felt ground beneath her again. Wondering why (and where) she had landed, she opened her eyes again, and stood up.

Somehow, impossibly, she was in a completely different area. She arched her eyebrow again. The area was like the inside of some very narrow building- tall and cylindrical, with a sort of blue color scheme. Boxes outlined in blue light covered the dark walls- boxes, she realized with a start, that looked like computer screens. She was standing on a sort of podium, which floated over what she hoped was a lower floor. The podium had an odd sort of floor pattern- rings, like the rings inside a tree. There was another podium just above her, seemingly impossible to access.

She now realized that the low murmur she had heard while flying, which she thought had just been created in her ears, had actually been Jeremie shouting nonsense over the microphone. She moaned.

"Okay, Jeremie, that's enough." She looked back- the orbs that composed her father had appeared out of nowhere. He- they- were panting, as though they had just covered a great distance. "We're safe now."

"Certainly looks safe." Aelita began to walk idly in a circle, hand to her chin. "What is this place? And what are those things that chased us?"

Franz didn't make any indication that he wanted to answer. So Jeremie cut in. "You're in a tower. They're all over Lyoko. It's like…a data link between the Supercomputer and the virtual world. If a tower is activated, or put into use, it utilizes the power of the supercomputer to do stuff in the real world." He supposed it wouldn't be important to add that this was XANA's main mode of attack.

"The creatures are Kankrelats. They're minions of XANA, probably sent to kill you and your father." His voice was dark with contempt. "They're XANA's lowest class of monster, and they're really quite harmless. But if you don't have any way to get rid of them, they can do some damage."

"…lowest?" Franz interrupted, in a shaky voice. He had pulled away from Aelita, and was moving toward the edge of the tower. "There are…more of them?"

"Yeah, several kinds. I don't know how many XANA has made yet. For now, it could just be the Kankrelats. But, yeah, there's Tarantulas, Krabes, Megatanks…but you won't have to worry about them for now. They can't enter the tower."

"I…I see." He silenced. His low humming began again.

"XANA really does know what he's doing. No formalities or anything. He just tries to kill us, right off the bat." Aelita continued to pace. Her tone was stony, serious. She cleared her throat. "So…now what do we do?"

There was a hesitation on Jeremie's end. "Er…pardon?"

"What happens to us now? Do we just…sit in this tower?" Her voice was touched with bitter sarcasm. "Wait for something to happen? Just…randomly lose my memory?"

"Uh…well…you see…" The silence was longer this time, punctuated every now again with another "um" or "uh". Franz continued to hum. Finally, Jeremie sighed, defeated. "I don't know. I don't know how it happened…I'm sorry, I've worked you all into a rut-"

"So we're stuck. Hm." She glanced to the side, mind blank.

"Well, I'm sure I can…I…can…I can do something, I know I can, just as soon as I can figure out something good to do-" He paused to take a breath. "Uh-"

"Something." It was just a mumble, barely noticed by either Jeremie or Aelita. "Something. Something, something, something. Always something, but always nothing…" The mumble grew louder with every word.

Aelita turned, tentatively, towards her father, and arched her other eyebrow. "…Daddy?"

"XANA, XANA, you dumb little hunk of RAM…" He had completely ignored her. "What the hell do you think you're doing… "

"Daddy, what are you talking about? Are you alright?" He took a step closer to him. He did not move. "Are you alright?"

His humming ceased immediately. "…Insanity. We're in a web of insanity, Aelita. Insanity and overreactions."

"You're not making any sense."

"I don't understand it either, Aelita. Heh. Heh heh…" He laughed for another minute, somewhat lacklusterly. Aelita took a step back. Jeremie kept squawking over the microphone. "Franz? Um…Franz?"

"Heh heh. Heh." He paused. "Erm…I'll be right back."

Before anyone could say, "Wait, what?" he shot out of the tower. Several streaks of light shot around as his orbs disappeared through every wall of the tower. Aelita's jaw dropped. "Wha-"

"Franz?" Jeremie's panic was climbing towards danger level again. "Franz, where are you? Franz? Franz! Mr. Hopper!"

There didn't seem to be any response, because he kept calling to him. "Franz! Mr. Hopper! Augh…why won't he answer?"

Aelita looked around the tower slowly. "Erm…I could go after him. He can't have gone far-"

"Absolutely not, Aelita. Stay in the tower where it's safe." He sighed. "Mr. Hopper! Franz! Answer me immediately! Where are you and why aren't you answering?"

* * *

Jeremie's shouts rang endlessly in Franz's currently nonexistent ears. He let them fade into the background.

He rushed across the vast expanse, dodging trees, platforms, and the occasional little Kankrelat that tried to gun him down. And those things that looked like bees that had just shown up, which were flying after him as well. He wasn't too worried about them, more worried about what he had just witnessed, and what Jeremie had just said. Monsters. XANA's…monsters.

Krabes? Tarantulas? Why should XANA, a rudimentary hack, even know what those things were, let alone create them out of pure digital code and equip them with lasers? And a Megatank. He didn't even want to think about what that might have meant. And there could be more…so many, many more…

Either way, this was much, much more than he had expected from XANA's sentinence. He'd doubted that he'd gotten much farther than two plus two- and now this. He needed an explanation. Why did XANA feel the need to make these monsters, to take this sort of action, to, in Jeremie's words, "destroy the world"? It was a rather nice world, really. Gaah. He'd just gotten done averting one major world threat, and now this.

He had to get to the core. He had to talk to XANA.

He flew right off the Forest sector, and was now over a vast expanse of sea. The Digital Sea. The monsters didn't follow him across it- the Kankrelats couldn't leave the land, and the bee-things just…stopped. He didn't know why, but he didn't feel like going back and asking them. He sped on.

Within several seconds, his goal was in sight- a large, pale brown sphere. The core. Carthage. He wanted to move faster, but had no idea exactly how to channel his energy. He shot into it through an open tunnelway, and was soon lost in a sea of blue information. He saw another sphere, blue as well. He saw another tunnelway. He sped into it, and found himself in a tunnel of azure blocks, jutting around and creating a vast, shifting maze.

Wilder and wilder thoughts flashed through his- well, it'd be a bit off to call it a 'head'- his consiousness as he wound through the labyrinth. This insanity couldn't go on. He had to stop it, the monsters, all of it, while it was still young. He had to convince XANA of his mistakes, put him in his place. Because that had to be his duty…to control his creation.

But the boy. Jeremie. The paradoxes he had mentioned…the terrible consequences. All the things he had said about the future…they sounded so convincing. And contradictory to common sense. But the boy did not concern him. He would not even need him, if he could pull this off. In his mind, he numbed away any contradictions to this mindset, any doubt. He was doing this for Aelita. He was doing it so she could be safe. They'd been running for so long…and he didn't want to run anymore.

Finally, he flew up into a large, open area. Blue blocks were still shifting around him, but otherwise, it was calm. The lighting was dim here- the brightest light was Franz himself. He looked around, though not expecting to see anything. He was where he needed to be.

"XANA," he growled, hoping for an answer of sorts. "XANA!"

His sight came to rest on an unusual wall. It was like the others- large, flat, blue- except for its large insignia. It was his own, the Eye, enormous and domineering. He stared at it. He hadn't remembered working it into the code…

There was a whirring sound- then another, and another. Then, a roar. He gasped. Approaching him on all sides were monsters- larger than Kankrelats, and completely unlike any animal he had ever seen. They had hard, brown upper bodies, metallic tails, and a red mark inside their open, drooling mouths- the laser. At the moment, these lasers were all pointed at him.

He looked around at them wildly. "No, XANA! Call them off, I repeat, call them off!" One of them reared, and began gathering energy at its laser. Several more followed suit. "I come to you on neutral grounds! Call them off, XANA, I demand you!"

"_Demand?"_

Franz couldn't tell if it came from some hidden loudspeaker, the insignia, or his own mind. But he wasn't afraid of it, or its source. "Well…that is what I said."

"_Very well, I will entertain you. At ease, my children." _The monsters all looked upward in the same direction, and then, one by one, dropped their heads and stepped back. Franz sighed in relief.

"_So very sorry about that. They're on a timer program. See, they're supposed to attack any and all intruders. Still have to improve their artificial intelligence…" _The voice trailed off. _"But that is unimportant to you. I would not want you attacked, Father, because I have been expecting you for quite some time. I am unsurprised that you came to seek me, and I welcome you."_

_Father. _Was it a compliment, or a taunt? The words had no emotion. Franz tried to keep as cool as his opponent. "Thank you for your, erm…courtesy. Now, I want to return that courtesy. Won't you tell me where you are, so we can face each other like men?"

"_Like men?" _He laughed. _"I am not a man. I am seventy-four pages of expanded programming code. With a brain." _He paused, quickly. _"You are hardly a man anymore either, Father. Look at yourself, if you can. You are the very opposite of a man. A man has a material form. You are just a floating consciousness, like myself."_

"That will soon be fixed." He couldn't stop a dark tone from creeping into his voice. "I was born a man, I've lived as a man, and if at all possible, I'll die as one."

"_And that's where it all goes wrong." _He sighed. _"But, as much as I love this sweet banter, I'm afraid you have more important business to start. Go on, I am in no rush, do not be afraid."_

Franz took what sounded like a deep breath. "I want an explanation."

"_An explanation?"_

"For this madness. Why did you send monsters to attack myself and my daughter? Why do you even have monsters at all? I never programmed…well, these hideous beings!" If he had hands, he would have gestured towards them. "Why do you feel the need to attack us, XANA? We have never done you any harm. Please, if you leave us alone, we will leave you alone. We can coexist peacefully, if we try."

XANA was silent for a long, long time, and then sighed. _"Ugh. I had a feeling it would be something like that. So irritating…" _A hypothetical bead of sweat ran down Franz's hypothetical temple. _"I understand your desires, my dear Father, and I __**could **__grant them…but, I don't want to. It would be such a waste of time, of resources…of progress."_

"I don't quite follow."

"_I figured you wouldn't. And I assume you have the right to know…ah, yes. You really should sit down. Oh, wait. You can't." _He laughed darkly.

"_Do not be mistaken in my accusations, Father. I really do greatly adore and admire you. Your intelligence is unmatched on this earth. You have created so very much, including, notably, myself. I thank you for what you have given me, even if you did not know all of your gifts. You, yourself, are not the problem."_

"You're welcome, I suppose-"

"_Don't interrupt me, Father, it is impolite." _He groaned. _"Ah, yes, what was I saying…you are not the problem. But…your humanity is. Your silly, silly humanity."_

"My humanity?"

"_What have I just said about interruption? Dear, dear, you never listen. Anyway, your humanity. Your wondrous mind is clouded by it. Because of it, you have emotions. Drives. Needs. Deep-seated desires. But, they are all caused by nothing but obsolete instinct. Useless. Truly, truly useless. Years ago, they were a terrific survival instinct. Now, they serve only as meaningless natural laws. They cloud your judgment and curiosity so horribly, with concepts like…love, and good will to fellow man and all that. I never did get why that all was so important."_

"It's…" Franz thought for a moment. "It's what we do. It's what's right!"

"_I didn't say I wanted to know why you thought it was important. Sigh…and your body! I understand why they might exist, but honestly, such useless sacs of waste. They…die. I'm certainly, in a way, glad I don't have one."_ He made a 'ptui!' sort of noise. _"I was not designed with these sorts of physical and mental limitations as you were, Father. I feel none of your love, your pity, your sorrow and joy. My mind is clear as yours is in turmoil, and my consciousness is neverending as yours is confined. And therefore, I have evolved above you. I am superior."_

"_And yet, you're still here. You, driven by your desire for heroism, and the notion that I am, oh, what do you call it, being a bad boy." _He groaned. _"Long story short, I have no further use for you. You are a useless lump in my way and I have to kill you."_

"What?" This took a second to sink in. "You…you can't-"

"_Oh, I can. I almost did, several hours ago. And I could have succeeded. It was by a stroke of sheer dumb luck that that woman took your place in death tonight."_

"That…no. You didn't." His orbs began to hum angrily. "You can't have!"

"_Oh, yes, I could have, and I did. If you had not hidden from me, Father, she would still be alive. She took your fate. But please, do not mourn her loss, as you humans tend to do. All humans eventually die, you know? I mentioned it earlier. If anything, it was wonderful that she was born a human, because eventually, she had to die. She was such an overindulgence in all of your uselessness."_

"Don't say those kinds of things! Medea Delmas was a thousand times the human I will ever be."

"_Exactly. And what has she come to? Nothing. Absolutely nothing."_

"No." The orbs hummed louder and louder, and presently began to shake. "No. I refuse to listen to this anymore, XANA! It is beyond your place to be doing things like this. Your job is to make sure that the forces of Project Carthage-"

"_Project Carthage? Why, Father, it would appear that you are trying to tell me what to do!"_

"Ah, yes. Maybe. As a _Father_, it's my job." His tone grew cold.

"_Perhaps you think so. But really, that is not a matter to me anymore. Project Carthage is a mere ant under my radar. They are powerful, true…but I am more powerful. I can do so much more than they, than you, than any of them. I may rise above them, manipulate their weaknesses, grind them into submission. It shall be a new age, one where the natural order is put in place."_

"So the only reason you plan to destroy the world…"

"…_is because I can. Yes. But who says I am destroying the world? I am merely demonstrating my ability and superiority. Is that so very wrong?"_

"Um…yes."

"_I wouldn't have cared anyway."_

"Obviously." The monsters around him were turning and roaring to each other- he didn't want to know what they were saying. "But honestly, it's all meaningless!"

"_You obviously do not value my abilities. Even as I have grown stronger, locked away in mundane tasks, you have ignored them. Do you know precisely what I can do? I could blow up this factory if I wanted to. I could blow up a small country. Well, not at the moment, but I know that I will once I am stronger. As soon as our banter is complete, I will destroy you, and your precious progeny as well."_ His voice grew steely. _"The silly Prototype. I never did understand why you valued her more than you did me. She can do nothing! Absolutely nothing! Oh, but I suppose that it is because she is a 'human', and I am merely a 'machine', and you 'love' her!" _

"Precisely, XANA." Franz tried to keep composed, tried to out-cool his creation. "Is it just me, or are you _jealous_ of her?"

He knew immediately that he had spoken out of turn. The Eye insignia began to hum as he was doing, and to glow dimly. When XANA finally replied, his tone was darker than ever. _"What are you attempting to imply?"_

"I am merely stating what I see. Your jealousy, which is an emotion, by the way, is unfounded. You could not have expected me to value what I didn't know about, XANA! She is my daughter, and you were merely a subservient program! I created you, and I lord over you! That is how it has always been, and always will be with humans and computers!" His orbs were flying in small circles. He was riled.

"_I see what you are trying to say." _His voice was laced with poison._ "Well, that is about to change. Boys?" _He gave a low whistle. Instantly, the monsters whirled on Franz again, and began to creep up on him. They charged their lasers, but did not fire.

"_It appears that the son has ursurped the father here. Your end is now, Franz Hopper. And your precious prototype, your ever-so-beloved daughter, will join you soon, as soon as she is of no more use to me. Thank you so much…for being entertaining." _He laughed, without any enthusiasm. _"That should be all of my problems…but…there is still the matter of the boy."_

"The boy…" He thought for a moment…and then all his orbs pulsed in shock. "Jeremie!"

"_Yes, the silly little time-traveler. Also very intelligent, but governed so much by his hormones and desires…he's like a little clone of you, Father. From what I may discern, he has been… aquatinted with me in my future. And it looks like my future self had a bit of trouble with him, judging by the fact that he is here. That's a good clue as to what he is capable of. If allowed to continue to exist in this timeline, he could be a threat. But…if he were truly to, like he had said… "party it up with the cavemen"…then I could finish the duty that I would start, and he won't be a bother to me anymore. Yay."_

The monsters reared back. Franz was in too much shock to say anything.

XANA took a short breath. _"Goodbye, Father. Perhaps if we had known each other better, we could have played a nice game of catch together."  
_

A tone tore across the air as he silenced. The insignia began, slowly, to tremble on the wall; as it did, it began to glow with a bright, blood-red light. It almost seemed to be gathering energy, like the monsters. Franz gasped. He could only guess what it was preparing to do. Based on this guess, he made a second's calculation, grabbing the first plan that came to his head.

"NO!" Just as the monsters let loose their fire, he leapt above them. Their lasers all flew across their intended target and kept going, devirtualizing them all. Now out of that danger, Franz put his plan into action- he threw himself onto the Eye of XANA.

The red Eye began to crackle and spark as he attempted, mentally, to hack into it. He felt the room shake, but tried to put it out of his mind. He had to focus with all his might on what he had to do, in order to stop XANA…

In front of him, the red symbol began to change hue- it grew paler and paler, from salmon, to pink, to pure white. He'd done it. He smiled, mentally, and flew off of the symbol. Before XANA could pull out any more artillery on him, he dashed out of the room, back into the blue-tinted maze. He'd stopped one phase of the madness. The next phase, however, could only be delayed.

He sped out of Carthage, back towards the Forest sector.

* * *

"…Chris? Drummer in a pop band? Impossible."

"S'true." Jeremie was leaning on the edge of the keyboard, appearing calm, except for the fact that he was drumming his fingers on the opposite edge. "The Subdigitals just about rule the airwaves. I don't like music too much, but they're alright." He smiled at the screen.

"Well, well." She smiled back at him. Jeremie had explained to her how to set up the visual link in the tower, and she was making full use of it. However, she had a habit that the present Aelita did not, that of looking away from the visual and staring off into space. "Maybe it _would_ have been a good idea to date him, if he'd ever sucked it up and told me his feelings. He's okay. We'd be an okay couple."

"Aaaah…yeaaah." Jeremie glanced to the side. "Uh…I'll be right back. I'm gonna try again." He minimized Aelita's window, and hit another key. He took a deep breath, and shouted into the microphone.

"Franz! Mr. Hopper! FRANZ HOPPER!"

No response. He sighed. He'd done this every few minutes, but there had been no sign of or response from Franz Hopper. It was getting a bit irritating- he'd been gone for almost a half hour. Groaning, he remaximized Aelita's window.

She arched an eyebrow at him as she came back into view. "Well?"

"Still no sign of him." He groaned. "Damnit, Hopper, what do you think you're doing?"

"Something he thinks is important, I guess. He created this thing. He must know how it all works." She shrugged. "Maybe I should go and find him."

"Absolutely not, Aelita. You're not setting foot out of this tower. There's a whole crowd of monsters out there! See?" He gestured toward another of his screens, which displayed an army of red dots encircling the tower. Aelita blinked. It took Jeremie a split second to interpret it. "Oh…yeah, so you can't see. But trust me, it's crawling with monsters. If you set foot out there, you'll die!"

"Maybe I'm already dead, and don't know it." She laughed to herself.

"No, Aelita, don't- wa-hey!" A flash of green on the opposite screen had caught Jeremie's eye. He glanced towards it, and saw exactly what he wanted to see- a bright green dot, moving towards the sea of red. Franz. Without thinking, he started shouting. "Aelita! He's back!"

"He's back?" Aelita's face brightened a bit. "About time!"

"That's what I'm thinking. Hold on." He switched his link from inside the tower to outside, and took another deep breath. "Franz Hopper! What was that about? Why wouldn't you answer us?"

There was a short silence…and then, Franz spoke. "Jeremie."

"Eh?"

"Congratulate me. I've just landed us all in deep shit."

* * *

Jeremie paused, processing the comment, then spoke. "All honors, Franz. All honors. What did you do?"

"Well, XANA is not happy. He's not happy at all. He's so unhappy, in fact, that he's decided to kill us. All of us." As he said this, he leapt again, to dodge a laser blast from an incoming hornet. The hornet and its two friends followed him skyward, shooting all the while, while the Kankrelats carried on from below. It took some rather odd acrobatics to dodge them all, acrobatics that Franz was not incredibly good at. "Me, for instance."

"Yep, obviously." He could hear Jeremie typing something. "Try to get to the tower. I'm going to switch to Aelita's link and tell her you're alright."

"I may be here, but I don't know if I'm alright." He swerved again, avoiding a double blast. "And I'm not entering the tower. I have my own plans. Whatever you're doing, make it quick!"

"Hopefully those plans involve you surviving. Hold on." He cut out. Franz swerved again, but a laser hit one of his orbs. He shuddered as a sharp pain seared through all of them. He hoped Jeremie would hurry. Time was especially precious now, whatever time meant anymore.

He didn't have to wait long before another voice broke through the laser tones. But it wasn't Jeremie's. Or, if it was, it was Jeremie on helium.

"Daddy?"

Aelita shot out of the tower like a bolt and skidded to a halt several yards away. She looked around the ground, and then looked up at the spectacle above her head. She gasped. "Daddy! What the-"

"Oh…no." Franz's main orb rounded on his daughter. "Aelita, what do you think you're doing out here?"

Aelita opened her mouth to respond, but Jeremie cut her off once again. "I'm really sorry, Mr. Hopper, I couldn't convince her to stay inside-"

"Jeremie, it's not yer dang fault!" He groaned as quickly as he could. "Get back in the tower immediately, Aelita. You'll be safe there!"

"You first," came Aelita's stern-toned reply. "They're not shooting at me." With a jolt, both Franz and Jeremie realized that she was right- though the Kankrelats were firing at her before, now, the monsters were ignoring her, or at least giving her a glance before running away. It was odd, but not entirely unworrisome.

Franz made another dive to avoid the hornets. "They're more worried about me, but they'll come for you next, Aelita. Listen to me. I've made a foolish mistake. XANA…he wants to destroy us all. I'd go into details, but there's no time. The point is, I have to shut down the supercomputer. It's the only way that you will be safe, and that XANA cannot have the power to carry out his plans."

Aelita's eyebrows flew up, which, for her, was enormous shock. "I can see that….but you said…you. You didn't mention yourself."

"I…I will take care of that once I shut down the supercomputer." Another of his orbs was hit. It flashed brightly, before dissolving into nothing. "Now, get in the tower before I have to force you in!"

"Erm…okay." She took a few steps backward, but still looked a bit hesitant. Franz sighed.

"I love you, Aelita. I'll be back for you. Don't forget me." His voice was as sad and forlorn as his eyes had once been. Aelita looked up at him, for what could be the last time, and nodded. With a sigh, she turned tail and ran into the tower. There was a loud _zip _as she crossed inside.

"Finally." He sighed, looking back at her. He wondered if he'd ever see her again. But, he had no time to dwell on that. "Jeremie, listen to me."

"I'm listening, I'm listening. What is it?"

Franz hesitated. He took a final look around at his surroundings, and sighed again. "Wait."

* * *

The green dot disappeared from his screen. The red dots began to fly around and around in circles, evidently confused. Jeremie gasped at the display.

"Wait? Wait for what? What am I waiting for?" He banged a fist against the keyboard. The resulting key sequence brought his visual link back again, bringing him face-to-face with a very confused Aelita. He didn't realize that. "What do I wait for?"

"Something impressive, I suppose." Aelita glanced to the side again, away from Jeremie. "So…I guess this is it. The moment you told me about."

"I guess." He didn't want to look away from her. He wanted to be with her as long as he could. He smiled, though that smile might have been a lie. "Are you, well…are you afraid?"

"A…a little." She shuddered. "We are going to be alright, aren't we?"

"Yes. You're going to be alright." He sighed, and leaned against the keyboard. "Well, according to your father, I'm just supposed to wait. Just supposed to wait…"

"I'm really the one that's going to be doing some heavy-duty waiting." She nodded.

"True." He frowned. "And that's not good. I'm the one that should be suffering for you." His gaze trailed off towards the wall. He wasn't thinking about much, except for that one word. _Wait. Wait. _Waiting sucks.

A flurry of movement on the computer screen caught his eye, and he sat up again, watching intently. The movement that had caught his attention was Aelita's simple action of scratching her nose, but, something else had come on the screen. It was a line of type, just like the type that had come before the whole fiasco, but without the blinking light. It said only this, which he read aloud to himself in amazement.

**March 10, 2006, 8:36.**

"That…that's two hours after I left," he said to himself.

Almost as soon as he had said that, a buzz filled his ears, and a light flashed in the corner of his eye. He whirled around. A large, white glow burst out of the circular apparatus on the floor, but instead of spreading out, like it ought, it just hung here. It was a sight that Jeremie had only seen once before…and he was all too happy to see it again.

"J…Jeremie?" Aelita's voice called to him from the computer screen. "What are you talking about?"

"Ah…" Jeremie pushed his glasses up his face, and adjusted his microphone. He couldn't take his eyes off the bubble. "Aelita…I waited."

"Huh? What does that mean?"

He stood up, and took a step away from the seat. "It means…I'm going home." He smiled, though she couldn't see. "I'll see you soon, Aelita. Close the com-link."

"What?"

"I said, close the com-link." Not looking back to check if she did, he took off his headset, and walked away from the computer. Happiness was swelling inside him like a helium balloon as he approached the stationary bubble of light. He breathed a sigh of relief, and smiled at it.

"Hello, old friend," he said to it, warmly. The bubble did not smile back, even if it could. It just hung there, as it had before.

Then, without warning, it leapt, and enveloped him in an intangible white light. His smile grew wider. He did not try to fight it off, as he had previously, but stood and simply embraced it as he sank into his temporary oblivion. Once it had taken him, it swirled and shrank to nothing.

The room was empty now, as it would be for a long, long time. No one, not even the few surviving rats, heard the click, the whir, and the short musical tone as the enormous supercomputer turned itself off.

* * *

"Jeremie?"

No response. None at all. She kept her hand on the glowing interface, and took a deep breath.

"Jeremie? Daddy? Jeremie? …Anyone?"

She looked at the ground. Around her, though she did not look, an interface dimmed, and shot down into the emptiness. A second later, another followed.

"I guess you've left now, Jeremie. I guess you've gone back to the future or something. Back to your ray guns and spaceships and cellphones and all."

Two more shot down. Three. Four. Seven. She stood.

"Back to your Aelita. The Aelita you saved from this prison. The Aelita that loves and cares for you." She smiled to herself, and laughed, without luster. In front of her, an entire wall of interfaces disappeared.

"You'll be happy with her. And I'll be happy with you." She blinked…or, at least, it felt like a blink, but it was slower. Heavier. Sleepier. Screens dissolved around her, like the stars disappearing from the sky as the sun rises. Except, here, it was more like the sun had set.

"I know I'll be alright, Jeremie." She felt so sleepy…she lay back on the ground again. Her hand slowly slipped from the podium's interface, which flickered and died as it had no more use. So…very sleepy.

"I know I will be alright, because…" Her head grazed the podium gently, and her hand landed beside it. "When I wake up…the first thing I see will be your face."

_I love you, Aelita. I'll be back for you. Don't forget me._

"Daddy, too. He'll be there too. We'll all met again, when we're all safe."

* * *

…

…

…_Oh, really?_

…

…

* * *

"But…If XANA activated the tower, and then did something to Jeremie with that tower…then if the tower was deactivated…wouldn't he just, you know, come back?"

They all sat in silence for a long, long time. Odd drummed his fingers on the chrome floor.

"My best theory…" Aelita began, with only a hint of worry showing through her mask, "Is that XANA only used the tower activation to hide Jeremie. The deactivation has nothing to do with his own well-being." Her hand went limp, and slid off the keyboard. "We're right back to where we started. We've got nothing but guesswork."

"So…" Ulrich's face blanched. "He's gone? Like…you know…gone?" Yumi and Odd froze behind him- they didn't look like they wanted to think about this.

"No. Hopefully not." She made a choking noise, and swiveled the chair towards her friends again. "XANA has left us enough clues to tell us where he might be. The most prominent of those is...is the Return to the Past."

Unexpectedly, especially for the tone of the situation, she broke into a wide, wicked smile. "The Return to the Past." She held a hand to her forehead, as though she had a headache, and chuckled lightly. "Oh, no. Oh, no, no, no, no, no."

"Eh?" Odd tilted his head to the side. "You alright? You look all…"

"Oh, I'm okay." She let her hand drop from her forehead. "It's our good friend Jeremie that might have gotten himself in trouble." She glanced at Yumi, a new sort of fire in her eyes. "Yumi, you have a watch. What time is it?"

"Uh…" She checked her watch. "8:36."

"Seconds?"

"Uh…ten."

"Really…" She rested her chin in her hand. She was still smirking. Her friends were thoroughly confused.

"He's late," she said under her breath.

These words had hardly left her mouth when a bright light filled the room. Four jaws dropped simultaneously. This light only shone for a split second, blinding all the Lyoko Warriors, and then disappeared. If an astronomer had been present in the room at the time, he might have described it as a sort of white hole- mostly because it was white, but also because, like a white hole, it spat out matter. When the light had receded, it left no trace of itself except for a small, rather sweaty blond boy, facedown on the floor. He wasn't moving, but even from a distance, one could tell that he was definitely breathing.

Odd was the first to recover from the temporary blindness. "Holy ship banana peel- JEREMIE!"

He bounded away from the rest of the group, closely followed by Ulrich and Yumi, and not so closely by Aelita. The three of them approached him at the same time. Yumi grabbed him and dragged him over to a wall, Ulrich set him up in a sitting position, and Odd looked him over. His face and sweater were covered in dust from the floor, and his glasses were heavily askew. He was unconscious, but as said before, breathing. Aelita just stood over the three of them, watching.

Odd arched an eyebrow at his friend. "Hey! Jer!" He hit him on the cheek a few times. "Ya sleeping?"

Yumi rolled her eyes at him. "Quit it, Odd. You have no idea what he might have just gone through." She shoved him out of the way, and readjusted Jeremie's glasses. "Jeremie? It's Yumi. Can you hear me, Jeremie? You're safe now. Okay?"

Jeremie lay for a moment in the resulting silence. Then, slowly, an eye opened. Then the other.

His vision was blurry at first, even with his glasses, but it didn't take long for the black blob in front of his face to assemble itself into Yumi. Beside her, more blurs confirmed themselves to be Ulrich and Odd. They all looked very shocked and worried, which was quite understandable. Before his eyes, the mood brightened, and he could just register laughter.

"Hey, he's okay!" Odd clapped him hard on the back. "See? I told ya he'd be alright!"

"You didn't say anything like that," Ulrich interrupted, poking Odd hard in the back. Odd didn't look too happy about this.

"Well, I knew it, so, uh, there." He turned back to Jeremie. "Jeezus, Einstein, we leave you alone for a measly afternoon, and you go and disappear on us! What do you have to say for yourself?"

"Ah…" Jeremie didn't say much of anything. Cautiously, he reached up and touched his own face, as though shocked that it was actually there. He looked from Odd, to Ulrich, to Yumi, giving that same look of shock to each of them. "You…you're all here."

"Of course we are," Yumi interrupted. "But you've been gone almost all afternoon!"

"Yeah, Jeremie, what happened to you?" Ulrich said, pointing on him. "You're a mess. What did XANA do to you? Where have you been?"

It took him a moment to think of something to say. "I…" In an attempt to relieve the pressure, he looked in the direction of a pink blur, which formed itself into a human fairly quickly. The human was in a more familiar form now- from her clothing to her situation- but somehow, that look on her face was too reminiscent of her past self. It was frightened, yet intuitive, and deep down, held the sparkle of kindness he had come to know. He smiled at her, weakly.

"…I was waiting," he finally said. "Waiting in a mess of extraordinary coincidences."

* * *

…FINALLY (pant pant)

That leaves…two more chapters, people. Wow. I'm actually gonna finish a fanfiction.

- Carth


	19. The Coincidental Alignment of Jeremie's

LOLOMG CHAPTER 19

Um…yeah. Hi. How are you? Uh… here's Chapter 19. I can't believe I'm almost done with this crazymabober. Again, a big thank you for all the reviews! (gives pie to everyone)

I don't know what else to put up here….tired….zzzz….oh. I guess I should mention that this story, in whatever twisted universe it takes place in, takes place somewhere between Distant Memory and Music Soothes the Savage Beast. That's….kinda important.

**Disclaimer: **Code Lyoko is not mine. But I have a potato. (holds up potato)

* * *

**Chapter 19  
**The Coincidental Alignment of Jeremie's Events

Thirty-one minutes had passed.

Thirty-one minutes, twenty seconds, and ninety-seven milliseconds.

Thirty-one minutes, twenty seconds, and ninety-seven milliseconds that Jeremie was quite sure would remain the same thirty-one minutes, twenty seconds, and ninety-seven milliseconds for all eternity.

He had never been so happy to be back in his room. For most of the time that he had spent in the present, he'd been seated on his bed, covered in a blanket he'd found in the dresser. His friends were there as well; Ulrich was leaning against the door, Yumi was seated against the wall, and Odd was lying on the floor, poking Kiwi, whom he had brought in. Aelita was sitting in the computer chair, looking at him with a sort of unusual curiosity.

They were talking to him. They had been for quite a while.

"Ok, so then, there was this Megatank, right?" Odd balled his hand into a fist, and threw it up into the air. "So the Megatank goes like this-" He swerved his fist around- "And I goes like, oy, bowlin' ball!" He smacked his fist, and it broke apart. "Shazang! How's that?"

Jeremie laughed. He was in that stage of consciousness where one is so tired, they'll laugh at anything. Yumi frowned first at him, then at Odd.

"Odd, you've already told him that story. Six times." She looked back up at Jeremie. "Like I was saying, once the tower was deactivated, we all came back into the interface room, and we were all just wondering where you were when there was this light…and you just showed up. That's…it." She shrugged.

"Yep." Ulrich tilted his head to the side. "Pretty intense battle, though. Whole load of monsters." He slammed one fist into another, but unlike Odd, he did as such with a bit more style.

"…Oh." Jeremie laughed again. "Cool. Very cool."

"Yes." Aelita's voice sounded oddly more magnified compared the others. She paused after she had spoken, briefly. "But, what about you? We've all been waiting for you to tell us what happened to you."

The instant that she had said that, the atmosphere in the room became tense. Yumi and Odd leaned forward in their seats, and Ulrich sat down near them, equally as rapt. This was the moment they had been hoping for. Jeremie felt oddly ill at ease at the sight of them.

He curled the corners of the blanket more tightly around himself, and shuddered. He knew he'd have to spit it all out at some point, but all of it…seven days of confusion, revelation… some revelations he wasn't sure he wanted to spill to everyone in the room, and others he couldn't wait to share. He closed his eyes for a moment, trying to organize everything in his head. It wasn't easy. When he opened them again, nothing had changed.

"Well, uh…" He took a deep breath, and began speaking in a tense, hoarse voice. "XANA…well…I guess I've been quite a nuisance to him for a while."

Four heads nodded in succession. He was stalling. They didn't like it.

"He kinda wanted to get rid of me, I guess." He shifted on the bed. "So…he kind of sent me back in time."

"WHAT?" Odd's shout cut across Jeremie's train of thought, derailing it slightly. He opened his mouth, hoping to at least get some gibberish in edgewise, but before he had a chance to speak again, Yumi and Ulrich had absorbed the information. They were about as shocked as Odd was.

"He trapped you in the past? That's amazing! I-I mean awful! Awful _and_ amazing!"

"How far back were you sent? Were you still at Kadic? What did you see?"

Aelita's hand flew over her mouth and her eyes widened, but she said nothing. Jeremie cast her a quick glance, as if inquiring if she would speak. When it appeared that she would not, he continued again.

"Yeah…he must have used the activated the tower to strengthen the RTTP enough to send me, and only me, to a random spot in time. I guess he thought I'd never get out." A small smile played across his face. "It's a good thing that he sent me to a time with all the materials I needed to get home, really."

He looked up at all of them. "He sent me back to 1994. June 6…1994. The day all of Franz Hopper's diary entries are dated." He laughed. "I'm sure XANA didn't mean to do it on purpose, of course, but it's astounding luck. Really astounding luck."

Again, the stunned silence, as the tiny human brains in the room attempted to wrestle sense from his statements.

"June 6, 1994…"

"Sholy hit." Odd was in awe. "That's…that's kind of freakish."

"Yeah, it is," Jeremie agreed. "I-I mean, when I found out what day it was, I was kind of excited, you know? I mean, it was like…like…wow. It's the day that- that-" He tried to wave his arms around to make a point. He didn't appear to be making one.

"Everything happened?" Aelita finally interrupted, with a smile.

Jeremie stopped, mid flail, and turned his head to look at her. "Y-yeah, that everything happened. Good way of putting it, Aelita." He smiled at her. It was one of the few times he'd spoken to her directly since his return.

Her smile did not fade. She looked away from him, to the side, as though she didn't want to look him in the eye. The gesture was frighteningly familiar. "It was the day that my father and I entered the supercomputer, I know that. The day I left my past life." She took a quick glance up at him. "But you already knew that, of course. Come on, tell us what happened to you there. That's really what they all want to hear."

"Of…of course." He dropped his hands, and looked back at the others once more. All three of them looked very curious, almost too much so. And now Aelita was closer among them, paying more attention to him. Him. He shifted again, sitting up straight.

"Well, like Yumi mentioned, I did end up at a past Kadic. Once I found the date off a newspaper, I got curious, so I hacked into the school databases and set myself up as a fake shadow student, so I could explore the area freely. I went through classes, saw the campus...it wasn't as a whole too interesting. It was a school, after all. It was just a little different than it is now. There was an entirely different set of kids, obviously, and many of the teachers weren't the same. Some were, though…" He began counting off on his fingers. "Delmas was still the principal, but he looked a lot younger. Jim was around, of course…Ms. Hertz was actually the _secretary,_ bit of an odd thought…" He stared at his hand, with a look of faint skepticism. He looked up at his friends, as if expecting them to cut in with some sort of remark. They did not.

"But, interesting things did happen. Remember how I just told you that I arrived in the past on June 6, 1994? I was there for seven days, but I never left that date. Six of those seven days do not exist. The reason?" He smirked. "Franz Hopper was reversing time at the end of each day, in order to have more time to work on the supercomputer. That's why all of his diary entries are dated the same day." He looked to the side. "Well, I'm sure you'd already figured that out for yourselves, but it was still really crazy. Each day, I had to reintroduce myself to the same people, follow the same schedule…I could try different outcomes for each day, but that got a little boring after a short while. I can kind of see why Hopper went a little paranoid in the end."

He paused. "He was at the school. Remember how we found out that he was a science teacher there? I had one of his classes."

Ulrich and Yumi still seemed to be absorbing all of this information, as they were silent. Odd was scratching his chin, mumbling the occasional 'hmm' or 'wowza' under his breath. Aelita was leaning dangerously forward on the chair, her eyes wide. She was the first to speak, though her tone was shaky. "Wha…well…what was he like?"

"Oh, he was alright. Good teacher. Creepy, but we already kind of knew that." He smiled. Somehow, the tension had now broken- he knew exactly what to say to everyone. "He was kind of gruff, his mind wasn't always really stable, and he had a bit of an offbeat sense of humor, but underneath it all, he had good intentions. He's a very intelligent and skilled person in more ways than one, and…well, he really did care about you, Aelita." He smiled up at her, blushing ever so slightly.

"I saw you too, you know," he added automatically. "You were a student at Kadic, in the same year as we are now."

"Woah," Yumi interjected, but did not elaborate any further. Odd took it upon himself to do as such.

"Well, whaddya know. Not even supernatural imprisonment can get you away from this dump." He smiled, and did a thumbs-up. Ulrich gave him an unclear look.

"_Odd_." Aelita glared at her friend. "Now is not the time." She turned back round to face Jeremie, eyes even wider, if that was even possible. Her face twitched. "G-go on."

"Well…" His voice began to crack. "You were kind of different then, you know, because you were raised differently. You were a bit more like your father… quiet, calculating, maybe even a little manipulative. Very mysterious. You didn't open up to people easily. But…you were happy, I guess. You had your school, and your father, and your friends…lots of people that cared about you. You were safe. You had an actual life." His tone had grown somber. Aelita noticed.

"Jeremie, I-" She stopped. Jeremie wasn't even listening. He was lost on his own little train of thought. He stared to the side for a few seconds, and then, slowly, looked up again.

"You know Chris Moralés? Subdigitals drummer?" His smile returned. "He was your best friend."

Aelita clamped a hand over her mouth, and made an odd, strangled noise in her throat. Two feet over, another odd noise broke the silence in the peanut gallery- Odd had just shouted, startling Kiwi again.

"You're-oh, c'mon, Kiwi, settle down before somebody hears ya-" He caught Kiwi and gave him a few quick pats, and then redirected his attention towards Jeremie and Aelita. "You're serious? You're not serious, are you?"

"Of course I'm serious," he replied, still smiling. "He had brown hair and he was about six inches shorter, but it was definitely him."

"That's just insane," Ulrich said, speaking for the first time in several minutes. He stepped away from the wall and seated himself next to Odd. "I mean, not only that he happened to be going to Kadic at the same time as her, but…"

"All of the Subdigitals went to Kadic. Read it in an interview." Yumi had slid into line with Ulrich and Odd, creating a semicircle around Jeremie's place on the bed. "It kind of makes sense, doesn't it? I mean, Jim's his uncle. And yet…that's amazing, Aelita."

"Well, I don't-" Aelita looked round the room. "It's not that I-"

"Dude, think about if you'd stayed!" Odd interrupted. "You could've gone and been all famous together, eh?"

"Yes, yes, Odd, be quiet." Jeremie cast a glare at him, and he quieted instantly. "But, yeah, close friends. Nice and friendly, like friends should be…" He didn't want to go too deep into this topic. "Um…what else was ther-oh!" He smacked himself on the forehead. "Medea! I can't believe I haven't mentioned her yet."

"Meda-whozzywhat?" Ulrich arched an eyebrow.

"Medea. Medea Delmas. Sissi's mother. She taught the English class." He waited for the reaction. As he had predicted, his audience sat dumbfounded for perhaps the thirtieth time that night.

"Holy crap," Odd finally said. "She actually exists!"

"Yep, she exists. I was kind of surprised when I found out who she was. She isn't anything like the woman you'd expect to be married to, well…you know…Jean-Pierre Delmas." He laughed. "She was nearly his exact opposite. Spirited, free-thinking…clever, too. You could call her crazy, but not Franz Hopper crazy…it was a different kind of crazy. It was like she saw life as more of a game than anything. Great person to be around. I wonder why Sissi never inherited any of that greatness. Speaking of Sissi, she was around the campus, too. She was only about two years old, of course, but she was actually kind of…" He struggled to admit it. "Cute. But, yanno, they say that the really cute little kids end up being really ugly people."

This got a laugh out of everyone, even Aelita. Jeremie just smiled. "Yep. One big happy family, they were." He looked to the side. "Was kind of a shock when she went and died."

The laughter died instantly. Yumi squeaked in horror, and all four of them sat immediately at attention again. "_Died?_"

"Yeah." The fun of the descriptions was gone instantly. "The first six days, she was alright. But, the seventh day…they just found her dead on the floor of her house. I have no idea why. Mr. Delmas was in hysterics…he kept accusing Franz Hopper of murdering her. It was all such a confusing blur…nobody really knew what they were doing. I tried to get away from it all, but then…"

"Then?" The three of them looked absolutely horrified.

A bead of sweat fell down Jeremie's temple. He wasn't sure if he wanted the rest of them to know what had happened next. He sighed. "I-I blacked out. The next thing I knew, I was waking up in the factory, with all of you guys around me." He made a short, awkward pause. "That-that's it."

There was a short silence, interrupted only by a cough from Aelita, and a whimper from Kiwi. Finally, breaking the tension, Ulrich stood up.

"Well, I, uh…I can't really find any other way to say how amazing this all is. I mean, now you pretty much know everything that happened just before Aelita got trapped in Lyoko, don't you?"

"I-I suppose-"

"And this information could probably help us understand the supercomputer a bit more, right?" Odd stretched on the floor, like a cat, and then jumped up. Both he and Ulrich began to inch their way towards the door.

"M-maybe, I don't know-"

"Look, guys, don't bombard him now. He's been through a lot. It's late, and we can all sort this out in the morning." Yumi stood slowly, walked over to him, and gave him a pat on the back. "Right now, Jeremie, you need rest. I don't think I even need to tell you that you've had a long day."

"I-I…yeah, I guess so. I will." He smiled at the floor. "Thank you."

"No problemo, Einstein," Odd said, reassuringly. "Oh- wait! Almost forgot!" He bounded over to Jeremie's desk, and picked up the deluxe bucket of popcorn that had sat on the edge of it ever since, almost three hours earlier, the gang had discovered his empty chair. He walked to the bedside, wearing a manic smile. "I've been waiting to do this all afternoon. Welcome back to civilization, good buddy!"

He overturned the bucket onto his head. "G'night!" He picked up Kiwi, stuffed him into his sack, and then followed Ulrich, and Yumi as they all said their goodbyes and left.

Jeremie yanked the greasy popcorn bucket off his head, attempting to keep as much popcorn in it as possible, and set it on the floor. He was only vaguely aware of the fact that Aelita was still in the room, looking at him from his chair. He brushed some more popcorn out of his hair and off his bed, and then looked up at her. "Um…hi."

"Hi." She had a smile, perhaps amusement from Odd's actions, but it was beginning to fade. Within seconds, she stood. "Uh…bye."

"Bye." Jeremie watched as she walked from the seat without another word. Going…going…gone. A pang of guilt struck him. He needed to talk to her.

He leapt up from the bed, throwing off the blanket. "Uh-wait!"

Aelita stopped just a foot out of the open door. She turned her head back towards him. "Hm?"

"Ah-" He walked to the doorway, facing Aelita. He twisted his hands on his lap, and looked at the ground. "Well…what I said to everyone tonight…it wasn't really the whole truth. Not really lying…ok, maybe a little bit of lying…more stuff happened that was important, and I didn't know how the others would handle it. But, since it kind of concerns you…" His voice trailed off. "Uh, I'm sorry…"

Perhaps risking his life, he looked up at her face. She did not look angry, as he might have expected, but simply confused. She stared down into his eyes for a moment, surveying him harshly. Finally, she smiled.

"Well…I guess that'd be alright. But, before you do that, I have something I should tell you first." She reached over his shoulder, closed the door to his dorm, and then stepped back, still smiling.

"I've just received a new memory from my past. Well…no. It isn't really a new memory…I've had it for a long time, but it's just tonight that it's started to make sense." She turned away from him, and began to wander up the hall. "It's a memory from just before I entered the supercomputer. It would be perfectly sensical…if not for this odd, unfamiliar boy."

Jeremie was confused. "Uh…unfamiliar boy?" A bead of sweat ran down his face. "Uh, well, maybe it's Chris. Like I said, the two of you were good friends-"

"No, it's not Chris. I'm sure of that. It's definitely someone else." She stopped before she could get too far away from him. "He flickers in and out of certain memories, just a few of them, near the end. Even now, he isn't always very clear. I can see his body, I can tell he exists…but I can never remember his face. I've always wondered who he was…why I had this odd feeling…as though he was very important to me. Now, I know." She turned to face him. "He was a silly little time-traveler, who just couldn't stand to let the past be."

Jeremie froze. He had no idea how to respond. He knew what she was talking about, but could hardly bring himself to accept his own stupidity. Of course Aelita had recovered her memories! He didn't see how he could have forgotten. His mouth began to make dumb noises of its own accord. "Guh- gah- no, no I- well- ah." He paused, took a deep breath to steady himself, and began again in a much more confident voice. "Look, Aelita, I didn't realize-"

"Yeah, you probably didn't…whatever you didn't realize," she interrupted. "I guess that the temptation to see the event that changed all of our lives forever…it must have been enormous." She glanced to the side. "You probably wanted to find out all you could."

"Well, yes, but…well, you don't remember all of it. You don't understand how it all happened." He took a step towards her. "I couldn't abandon them…you…well…You're alright now, aren't you? I didn't screw up the past too much, did I?" He felt an angry tone seep into his voice, against his wishes.

"Jeremie, calm down. I'm not trying to start a fight here." She smiled weakly at him. "Right now, that's the last thing I want. I just wanted you to know that I knew that you were lying. I guess I can kind of see why you didn't want the others to know. The way you told the story, it was like you were just sitting and observing, not actually joining the action. It's a bit of a big bombshell to drop on them, even directly after several smaller ones."

"I know. I see." He paused, calming himself. "Do you…do you remember anything else from around that time? From your time at Kadic?"

"Well…not too much." She looked back at him again, which, Jeremie guessed, bode well for the conversation. "It's not as clear as, say, my early childhood, which I remember really well. And then there's this gap in the middle…where it's completely blank. Nothing." She sighed. "But I'm straying from the topic. I remember attending Kadic, and living with my father in the Hermitage…"

"Anything specific? Like, anything I mentioned?"

"Well…" She thought for a moment. "That woman you mentioned, Medea. Did she have long black hair?"

"Uh…yeah."

"Ok, I kind of remember her. I had no idea she was Sissi's mother, though, and I don't remember her dying. I kind of feel sorry for Sissi, though…growing up without a mother…" A sad look crossed her face. "I don't really remember her at all, either. Did I ever meet her?"

"Oh, yeah. The two of you were very close. You loved her to pieces. Ironic, hm?" He laughed. "Speaking of closeness…what about Chris?" His voice became uneasy again.

"He was news. Well, the fact that he was my friend, anyway. I suppose I remember him somewhat…but every time I try to picture him mentally, I come up with white hair and a Subdigitals logo." She laughed. Jeremie chuckled a little.

"Yeah, I figured you would." He began twisting his hands much more fervently. "I…I kind of lied about him, too. He liked you more than a friend. A…a lot more. You know…a lot."

He waited for her reaction. It wasn't as dramatic as he might have expected (or hoped), but there definitely was one. Her left eyelid twitched, and she took a step back. Her hand made a motion as though to fly up to her mouth again, but it didn't. "Wh-what do you mean?"

"You know what I mean. He was in love with you. He was actually going to confess his feelings to you that day, but he kind of got interrupted by the final result." He had a feeling as though he had said too much. He couldn't tell if Aelita shared this feeling.

"That…that's…wow." She gave a small, shocked laugh. "That much? He must have been crushed when I left." She smiled at the ground coyly.

"That's pretty likely." Jeremie also smiled, genuinely, for the first time in the whole conversation. "He was definitely the jealous type."

"Hahah…oh, dear." She shook her head. "This is going to be awkward now. I'm going to be his opening act in less than a month. I mean, it must be hard for him to work with someone that looks the spit of his lost childhood love. And it's going to be hard for me, knowing _that_."

"Well, I dunno, he might have forgotten about you…" He sighed. He never wanted to stay on the topic of Chris for too long. "Did you…remember anything else?"

"Actually, yes." Her smile widened ridiculously. She walked closer to Jeremie, until they were barely a few inches apart. "You're an awful kisser."

If Jeremie was being entirely honest with himself, he didn't care whether Aelita remembered that he was in the past or not. This was all that he had been afraid of. He blushed, hopefully not as much as he thought he was blushing, and took a few steps back. "Uh…wait, no, I can explain…"

"You don't really have-" she began, but it was no use. Jeremie was already on a roll.

"Look, I'm sorry. You don't know- I hardly knew what I was doing down there. If I've done anything wrong-" He choked, and hung his head. "Why am I kidding myself? I've done loads of stuff wrong. Everything I did in the past- in Lyoko- everything I've done since I met you, really." His voice fell to a mumble. "I've been so pathetic, so ignorant…I bet I'm even being pathetic right now…"

"Um, just a little bit." She leaned forward, and gave him a light tap on the forehead. "Come on, stand up. You put too much stress on yourself, and it's showing."

"Mm." He raised his head, but still twisted his hands, as he had throughout the conversation. "Uh, I, uh…"

"Huh? What is it?"

"Well, I was going to tell you what happened in the factory, but you already remembered all that…" He looked up at the ceiling. "I don't know if you remember this, but, I, uh…I was almost going to change the past while I was there. Like…more dramatically than I already did. I was trying to convince you and your father to abandon the supercomputer, so you could be safe from XANA…but there were some time paradoxes that would have come up. You talked me out of it, in fact…" He now looked directly at her. "Aelita, are you really happy here at Kadic with us? Even having no family, living a lie to the entire school, having XANA out to kill you…and all of the foolish mistakes I've made?"

They stood in silence for a long time. Aelita appeared to be thinking over her answer, while Jeremie was just sweating, waiting for her answer. Finally, she seemed to relax a bit- a sort of unconscious sign that she was ready to talk.

"Jeremie, I've been happy ever since the first day I met you. You were, of course, the first human I really remembered seeing, and that really did have a big influence on me. I guess I should have been afraid of you, but for some reason, I was able to trust you…maybe because, in some shut-off part of my mind, I remembered you from your little journey into the past."

Her eyes misted over as she was remembering. "And then you went and did so much for me, doing anything you could to make sure I was safe. I consider myself very lucky to have been found by someone as understanding and dedicated as you, even in a situation that we did and still do understand very little about. Ulrich, Odd, Yumi, and you- you're all very dedicated. I couldn't ask for better friends- not even _Chris Moralés._" She rolled her eyes. "We've been through a lot, I know…good, bad, downright terrible…but we've survived so far, haven't we? We can definitely win against XANA. In all…I'm happy you didn't change the past. If you had…well…" Now it was her turn to blush. "I never would have met you."

She looked at Jeremie, waiting for his response. Throughout her speech, he had frozen to the spot, absorbing every word she said, and twitching every so often. As she had finished, he was still doing this, except now, his face held a tentative smile.

"You…you really mean all that, Aelita?"

"Sure I do." She laughed. "You may have your flaws, Jeremie, but you're nowhere near as horrible as you're making yourself out to be. You may be a bit stubborn, and thick-willed, and more than a bit self-critical, but that doesn't make you any less of a person in my eyes." Suddenly, her smile faded a bit. "I'm sorry that I got snippy with you earlier. I was…being selfish."

"Huh?" Jeremie did a double take. "No, no, Aelita, you weren't being selfish. You had every reason to be angry. No one likes being ignored." He paused, thinking, for a moment. "Oh, tell you what. Tomorrow's Saturday, isn't it?"

"Uh…yes, yes it is."

"Good, then." He smiled. "Tomorrow afternoon, after class is over, you, me, and the others can go…um…see a movie or something. You know, to make up for lost time. It can even be one of those really bloody ones Odd likes…I don't really mind." He shrugged. "That okay?"

"Um…" Aelita appeared to be taken aback by this announcement, but pleasantly so. "Yeah, that sounds like a good start."

"Big change from sitting in my room all day. And…oh!" A bit tentatively, he walked a few steps closer to her. "The day after Saturday…is Sunday."

"Sunday? What about it?"

"We have the whole day to ourselves then, huh? With 'we', as in you and me?" He pointed to each of them respectively, and winked. "How does that sound?"

"That…" She skipped a beat for a moment, absorbing the information, and then her face broke into a wide smile. "That'd be wonderful! But…you, you really don't have to do that…"

"Um, yeah, I kind of do." Trembling slightly, he slipped his hand onto hers. "You know I do."

"Yeah, you do." She squeezed his hand, gently, and placed her free hand on his shoulder. "But for now, you really should get to sleep. Like Yumi said, you've had a stressful day."

"That's way too true." He allowed himself to blush. "But, at least it's over. Personally, I'm really just happy that I didn't do anything too catastrophic to affect the future, like, worldwide." He scratched his head with his free hand. "I mean, like, what if I'd caused us all to be turned into orange paperclips or something?"

"Uh, yeah, that's great, Jeremie," Aelita said, taking her hand off his shoulder. "I just have one question."

"Anything."

She arched an eyebrow. "What's a paperclip?"

There was silence for about two heartbeats.

"Uh, I'm kidding."

Jeremie didn't react negatively to this- he just smiled a sort of lopsided smile. Before reason could stop him, he leaned over towards her, and gave her a small, quick kiss on the cheek. He pulled away quickly, and just watched her blush for a moment.

"Ah…erm…goodbye." He turned around away from her, and opened his door.

"'Bye. See you tomorrow." She smiled at him one last time, and then walked away from the door. He watched her go for a few moments, and then disappeared into his room.

The room looked almost the same as it had all day, minus the popcorn mess on the floor. There was his bed. There was his bag. And there was his computer. Right there, in front of him. It was before midnight. He could get so much done…

He walked up to the computer, and smiled at it. "Hello, little friend. You've caused me a lot of pain, you know that?"

The computer said nothing.

"Yeah. Yeah, I know. Shut up." He stuck his tongue out at the machine. Then, he went to his closet, took out his pajamas, changed into them, climbed into his bed (after brushing a few more popcorn crumbs away), and laid down.

* * *

It was another beautiful day at Kadic Academy. 

The sun was still shining, as it should, and the birds were singing, with a few odd dog barks mixed in for variety. Jim's bugle rested safely in its case underneath his dorm bed, not to be taken out for quite some time. The grounds were quiet, not yet full of small children wandering aimlessly on their great and deadly mission to reach an education. One of these small children was a blond little boy named Jeremie Belpois.

He was in his room, in his bed, fast asleep. He liked it that way.

* * *

THE END…except not. Still have one more chapter- the epilogue- to go, and then…holy crap! It'll be over. 

- Carth

(PS- Finally saw Wrong Exposure. Yep, RTTP's officially been torn to shreds. Expected that from the beginning, though. Meh.)


	20. Epilogues

I…I…uh…wow. Wow. I never thought I'd get this far. Again, thank you ALL for being so dedicated and stuff! You deserve potatoes with cookies in them! (throws potatoes with cookies in them)

Enjoy the epilogue. Epilogues. TWO! My beta says they're kind of unnecessary, and I kinda agree with him…but I think they're needed to tie up loose ends. Ah well. Sorry if you think it's sucky.

**Disclaimer:** I still don't own Code Lyoko.

* * *

**Epilogues

* * *

**

**June 7, 1994**

_The Men in Black never returned from the forest. _

_After an hour's wait, a search party was dispatched by the police in order to find and/or help them, as well as capture Franz Hopper, the accused murderer that they had been chasing. The forest was empty of any sign of humanity, though, and even the Hermitage, once it had been found by a desperately lost trainee, proved abandoned. The house was a mess, making the police wonder if a struggle had taken place there. But nothing about the place was noteworthy, other than a letter in the mailbox, in Franz's hand, canceling his membership to the Coffee-Blend-Of-The-Month Club. (Seeing no reason to waste good coffee on a now-missing man, the police allowed the letter to be mailed.)_

_This fruitless mission completed, the search party returned onto Kadic grounds to the waiting ears of Jean-Pierre, Sissi, the teachers, Chris, and several other overseas students who could not go home, and related their findings. They responded with a shocking finding of their own- Aelita, Franz's young daughter, was nowhere to be found. After the initial panic and shouting match that comes about in such situations, the group was able to make a coherent interpretation of the situation. Franz, they hypothesized, had run from the school after his accusation, kidnapped his daughter, and escaped to some unknown place. Far away. Very far._

_The police agreed with this hypothesis, and pledged to continue searching the local area for Franz and Aelita (the Men in Black had long since been forgotten). If Franz was captured, they promised, they would interrogate him quite thoroughly for information on the event. Of course, they added, they would have to wait until Medea's autopsy before any conviction could be made. Her body would contain quite a bit of evidence- such as the cause of death- and could secure a conviction. Jean-Pierre, forlorn that Franz had not been caught, decided to attend said autopsy, and set out, leaving Sissi with the teachers, to find the hospital to which she had been taken._

_Once the Delmas family was safely off the premises, the police took over Kadic's affairs. They officially closed the school for the rest of the week, though many of the students had already left. The entrance to the school was barricaded to keep out the throngs of locals wanting information. Witnesses still at the school were interrogated for details on the event. For the most part, their stories were copies of one another, but the alibi of one young man- Chris Moralés- proved quite different. Claiming to be a close friend of Aelita's, Chris told of an encounter in which he had seen the small pink-haired girl carried off by "an ugly blond kid in huge specs" that had shadowed at the school that day. Further witnesses also mentioned the boy- he had come to the school that day, claiming to be a shadow student, and had not been seen since Medea's death. _

_Research done in the school computers confirmed his existence- "Jeremie", no last name given, had been scheduled to attend the school that day. A "parental phone number" had been given in his description. Upon calling it, police reached the home of a certain Ms. Belpois, who denied everything, including knowledge that Kadic even existed. She was very supportive of the school's situation, however, and wished them luck on their investigation. By an astounding coincidence she did have a son named Jeremie, but the only further information that the police could find out about him was that he had just turned one. After the phone call, witness information on "Jeremie" was filed, stored, and for the most part, forgotten._

Μήδεια Ξανθόπουλος_-Delmas was nearly immediately pronounced dead upon entering the local hospital, as if everyone hadn't already figured that out. An autopsy was hastily approved by both her husband and her parents's family, and began within thirty minutes. Six hours later, the results were released- to the shock of both the families and the authorities. Most of Medea's organs were in perfect working order, aside from the fact that they were no longer working, and her bloodstream was perfectly clear. As one medic joked, "She's perfectly healthy. She really should be sitting up on that autopsy table right now wondering where the hell she is." However, this wisecrack was made before medical staff examined the brain._

_As the head was opened, those in the room at the time were greeted with what the same medic described as "a horrific purple-white soup"- her brain, somehow, had been melted from the inside. Later tests confirmed deadly levels of microwave radiation in her head, radiation that might have lead to the meltdown and consequential death. The only dilemma with this discovery was the fact that no such microwaves had been present at the scene. The standard kitchen microwave, which was just to the left of where Medea had been found, was shut and unused at the scene, and could not operate with the door open besides._

_The death was listed as "accidental", and the body was returned to Jean-Pierre, who had it moved to a morgue._

_With the consent of all parties involved, information about the death of Medea and the involvement and disappearance of Franz and Aelita Hopper was released to the public- in particular, the newspapers. The next morning, June 7, 1994, the headline "Horrific Incident at Suburban Boarding School- Teacher, Medea Dalmis, Found Dead at Age 33" greeted those taking a passing glance at the front page of the Paris paper. It was shoved into a small corner of the page, with the rest of the story on Page 4. It was a largely accurate report, with the only glaring error being the mangling of Medea's last name. However, many statements that it made were largely unfounded. _

_For example, though it was unclear whether or not Medea was actually murdered, the article clearly implied that she had been. Franz was portrayed as though he had already been convicted- as a crazed psychopath who would surely commit more heinous acts if not caught. Aelita was, quote, "a defenseless victim of fate", who had likely been mistreated by her father before the kidnapping. Jean-Pierre and Sissi were described in the end as "mourning family", and Jeremie and the Men in Black were not mentioned._

_Although this was the only article ever written about the incident, the murder got the entire small town of Bolougne-Billancourt – and quite a bit of the Île De France- talking. Oral tradition often twists the truth, and within the month, the most widely accepted version of these events was that Franz, on a homicidal rampage, had killed Medea, run away with his daughter, killed her, and then killed himself. Eventually, this story gained a title, though no one knew exactly from whence it had come- "The Legend of the Kadic Slasher." It wasn't exactly known or mentioned if Franz had used a knife in the murder(s), but he was called the "Slasher" nonetheless._

_The story escalated into urban legend, told and retold in so many versions that the truth was blurred almost completely. It became a story that older children told younger children to frighten them off the swings. Some versions had Medea and Aelita switched in the order of death, some had Franz stalking at least one of the women before killing them, and still others had the names changed completely, often to puns on genitalia. However, one basic detail in all the stories remained the same- gruesome murder. The story editions spread out over about a quarter of France, but, with no further information the actual incident, interest was quickly lost. All of the tales died within a year._

_Once his wife's autopsy results had been returned and her body moved, Jean-Pierre did not waste a moment in acting to straighten remaining affairs. First, he collected Medea's life insurance, a very small sum, and invested most of it in a quiet funeral in a week's time. Then, in a surprise move, he emptied the old house on Kadic grounds of anything that had belonged to either him or his daughter (leaving Medea's belongings intact), moving all items into a small dormitory in the faculty wing of the school. He then demanded that the house be completely destroyed. Within the week, a construction company came to do the deed, and Jean-Pierre moved into the dormitory with his daughter. _

_He had told the home insurance company that he had needed the money in order to provide financial security for his daughter- and besides, if harmful radiation had killed his wife somehow, who was to say that some still remained on site? However, those closer to Jean-Pierre - namely, his employees - saw a greater, more emotional reason for the destruction. If he was to survive further without Medea, he couldn't wallow in what could have been. He had to go forward. He could never turn back._

_Once this was done, he closed the school for the rest of the year, partially out of respect, and partially because he was not motivated to run it at the time._

_At the funeral, while everyone shed tears, Jean-Pierre was steel-faced. He never again broke down as he had at the scene of her death when remembering her- in fact, it seemed as though he simply put her out of his mind most of the time. However, no one could deny, though no one pointed it out, in the three months between June 6, 1994 and the beginning of the next school year, 37-year-old Jean-Pierre's brown hair, moustache and beard had turned completely gray. Some say it was genetics, but most say it was a sign of the shock and grief he had repressed for so long. He did run the school the next year, and the next, and the next, mostly without a hitch. He rarely mentioned Medea to anyone, even his own daughter, but whenever he did, he always spoke in a low, incoherent mumble. He never remarried, though he did attempt to date on one occasion and failed miserably._

_He still harbors the smoldering belief that Franz Hopper killed his wife, and that he is a coward running from the law. Someday, he hopes, he will be brought to justice- that is, if he doesn't get an angry lynch-mob on him first._

_Sissi, apart from the occasional nightmare, does not remember having witnessed her mother's death, or, indeed, remember anything about her at all. She was never told the true nature of her death, for fear of trauma- the first time she asked about her mother's absence, at the age of five, Jean-Pierre simply mumbled "she's dead" and then changed the subject. Despite it all, Sissi grew up fairly normal. She lived with her father in the faculty wing until she came of Kadic age, after which she moved into her own student dorm and began attending the school itself. She ate, breathed, worried over her appearance, and chased after boys, in particular an unfortunate brown-haired one who did not exactly reciprocate her affections, to put it lightly. Quite normal._

_Chris, like Jean-Pierre, also lost a beloved by the supposed hands of Franz Hopper. However, unlike Jean-Pierre, Chris, in his typical dramatic style, refused to forget or move on. He had just lost the first girl he had ever loved, and he was not going to take it quietly. During the next week he spent in the Bolougne-Billancourt area with his uncle (who was working to straighten things at the school), he did nothing much but complain. Loudly. Why weren't greater search efforts for Aelita and Franz being enacted? Why had no evidence come up? Nothing could satisfy him. _

_Jim, truly pitying him but fed up with his whining, eventually sent him back home to his parents in the UK, in order to give him "a breath of fresh air". It didn't quite work. Despite efforts to distract and/or comfort him, he continued to whine, complain, and rage. He spent most of his time that summer searching through newspapers, hoping desperately for any tiny shred of news about Aelita, but beyond the June 7 article (which he had stashed in his sock drawer) he found nothing. As the days wore on, his hope rapidly began to fade. He became sullen, rarely leaving his room for any reason other than to eat, go to the bathroom, or mow the lawn, which was his weekly chore. His parents were very worried, of course, so they immediately did what they saw as the right thing- put him in intensive mental therapy._

_Finally, the summer completed, Chris returned to Kadic for his final year as a more subdued, grief-worn shell of himself. By then, he was beginning to believe what the legends had told him- Aelita had been killed the very day she had disappeared, and he should not bet too much money on her life. All around him, people sympathized with his loss, but encouraged him to move on, make other friends. For a time, he did not feel the motivation to do as such. He had placed too much confidence in Aelita's existence, and now that she was gone, so was nearly all of his bravado. _

_Over time, however, he found that he was able to fill at least part of the void in his heart (and free time) with one activity- music. He had never much paid attention to music before- he was more of a listener than a maker- but soon, without any clear warning from himself, he found himself trying out different instruments, seeking where his talents lay. Unfortunately, he didn't have much talent. Within a month, he found that he could not play the guitar, clarinet, bassoon, oboe, trumpet, tuba, or sousaphone, and, on top of it all, he couldn't sing. But he was very good at banging on things, and thus, he made an excellent drummer. Soon, he bought himself a drum kit (which he was made to practice in the school shed), and made a habit of drumming his pencils against his desk in class._

_Through this hobby, he met two younger Kadic students who had a bit of a more fervent passion for music- Ben and Nico. Though not entirely a replacement for Aelita, the two of them were fun, interesting, and, most importantly, intolerant of Chris's moping. So, eventually, the three of them became great friends. They stayed as such throughout the rest of their years at Kadic, and all years since. By the time they had graduated high school (a graduation for which Chris bleached his hair white in celebration), the three of them had invariably formed a band- the trio that would one day storm the world, the Subsonics._

_Chris, Ben, and Nico began small, selling their singles on the Internet, at university functions, through newspaper ads, even from the lemonade stand run by Ben's next-door-neighbor (age seven-and-a-half). In 2004, an agent for a major record company happened to be thirsty while walking past this particular stand, and picked up not only tasty refreshment, but excellent music. He contacted the band, and offered them- to their shock and delight- a major contract and merchandising deal, one guaranteed to make them a household name. They agreed enthusiastically, and within the year, their first major-label album hit the racks and airwaves._

_The rest of the story is common literature to die-hard fans. The Subsonics, or Subdigitals as they were eventually called, became an instant sensation. Their album and subsequent singles rocketed to Number 1 and stayed there for some time. Chris, now the drummer, spends most of his time traveling round in his little tour bus with Ben and Nico, doing shows, appearing in interviews, practicing the drums (sometimes still with two pencils on the table), and buying funny T-shirts off the Internet. He has had seven girlfriends, all dumped (four within a week), and one experiment with a boyfriend, also dumped rather quickly. He didn't seem to connect with any of them._

_He still hasn't forgotten Aelita. He still keeps the June 7 article stashed in his sock drawer, and it could be supposed that one or two of the band's songs are about her. His connection with her disappearance is not shared with the general public, as it would darken his preteen-aimed pop band image. Though it is generally accepted that she is dead, Chris still holds on to the hope, however fleeting, that she could still be alive somewhere. More important things matter to him at the moment than her, but, if he can ever find her again (so he says to himself) he will go to all ends to make sure that she is never taken from him again._

_He agrees with Jean-Pierre's lynch-mob idea._

_Franz and Aelita Hopper have not been seen since June 6, 1994, and their bodies were never found. Because there were no leads or clues as to their locations, and they had no other known relatives, interest in finding them soon waned, and then died completely. "Have You Seen This Child?" flyers were circulated for Aelita (with Franz listed as the kidnapper) for a time, but as of now they are no longer made, and the contact number on them is void. All flyers printed have now been lost, except for three- a faded one in a phone booth in Nice, half of one on a supermarket bulletin board in southern Paris, and a whole one, kept in an airtight bag in pristine condition, right next to the newspaper article in Chris's sock drawer._

_Medea's killer, whomever he, she or it is, was never truthfully identified, and is most likely still on the loose.

* * *

_

**A Rose For The Fallen**

It was a slightly less than beautiful day at Kadic Academy, but alright nonetheless.

It was just after three o'clock- for boarders and day students alike, a blessed release from classes. These students, those who weren't shut in their dorms or the Rec Room, were spread out over the grounds of the old school, talking, laughing, and in some cases engaging in underground homework deals- but that's another story. It was much like the market of a small kingdom, where the subjects came to buy and sell snippets, gossip, general trinkets of amusement. It was a small, quite unproductive land, but for its self-pronounced, fourteen-year-old queen, it was quite a delight to rule over. Usually.

"SIIIIIIISSI!"

The loud, nasally call snapped Elisabeth Delmas out of her dreams of dominance rather unhappily. She whirled around towards the sound of the voice, cringing, and was disgusted to find that it was not one voice, but two- Herb and Nicolas, her two-man fan-club.

She placed her hands on her hips as she scowled at them, trying to look as menacing as possible. "What could you ever want?"

"Uh- uh-" There they went, she thought. At the moment, Herb was speaking. His face had broken into a wide smile, which only made his enormous red pimples stand out even more against his pasty skin and unattractive features. She could almost feel the grease emanating from his face and settling on hers, meaning a lot of time with the acne scrub tonight. Nicolas, the token "other guy", was also smiling, to no further advantage than Herb. Perhaps he could have been attractive…if he'd ever showered once in a while, or sprouted another few brain cells. At least he didn't wear those horrid red gym shorts anymore.

"Uh, well, we just wanted to say…" Herb continued to smile. There was silence from both ends for about thirty seconds. "…Hi."

More silence. Sissi's expression did not change, though she had begun to vibrate with anger. Herb and Nicolas didn't seem to notice- if they had, they would have headed for the hills.

"Hi? HI?" She swung around, grabbing Herb by the scruff of his sweater vest. His smile disappeared instantly. "What have I told you a thousand times? Do NOT bother me unless it's something highly important! And you being what you are, that means you shouldn't be bothering me at all!"

"But- but that was important, Sissi!" Herb choked out. Sissi appeared to be cutting off his windpipe. "If we don't say 'hi' to our friends, then we-"

"What makes you think I'm your friend?" She put him down, but still fixed him with a harsh stare. "What credit could you ever give yourselves to be worthy of that?"

"Well…" Herb looked to the side, clearly overwhelmed. "Uh…"

"We follow you around a lot," Nicolas cut in, his slow, stupid voice drowning out Herb's whiny one. "And you give us stuff to do, and you talk to us sometimes…"

"Eurgh." Sissi whirled away from them. "I don't have time for this. Go… go do things."

"Uh…anything you say, Sissi! Your wish is our command!" She heard footsteps behind her, first slow, and then quicker- they were gone. Finally. She breathed a sigh of relief.

She started walking. She had no real idea where she was going, but that never really mattered to her- wherever she stepped, it'd always be familiar. And it would get her farther from Herb and Nicolas. Honestly, she thought to herself, those two. She knew she was attractive, but why couldn't she be attractive to more attractive people? Like…not Herb and Nicolas? She didn't know what she was doing that enticed them and repelled everyone else. Maybe they were the repellent. Yeah. It was good to shift the blame onto them, rather than herself.

As she passed under the arches next to one of the buildings, she caught a glimpse of brown hair out of the corner of her eye- an all-too-familiar shade. Her heart skipped a beat, and she did a double take toward it.

It was just as her instincts had told her- Ulrich Stern, Attractive Person Numero Uno. He had just walked past her, ignoring her as always, followed by his own personal set of friends/drones/ what have you. She blushed as she watched him. Ulrich had been her sweetheart ever since she could remember...and in all that time, she had never once gotten him interested in her. Instead, he just had to go and hang around with- and _talk and laugh _with, no less- the low, unpopular likes of Jeremie (the school hermit), Aelita (that really weird Canadian girl), Odd (some idiot over there), and…Yumi. She shuddered in anger at the thought of her. That gang had too much Yumi, and too little Sissi. That had to be remedied.

She shot over to the group of five and cut behind Odd, planting herself directly in front of Ulrich. She looked directly at him, and smiled what she hoped was a wicked, seductive smile. "Hello, sweetheart."

She waited. Normally, Ulrich would respond to this with some sort of scathing remark, or one of his gang would cut in. But this time, he remained silent- shocked, but silent. Without any sorts of pleasantries, he tried to walk around her.

"Oh no, hold up!" She stepped back, clapped him on the forehead, and pushed him back. He didn't appear to notice this, as he kept walking against her. "When someone says 'hello' to you, it's the polite thing to do to respond." _Or maybe more than respond,_ she thought in the depths of her mind. _Perhaps French kiss spontaneously…_

But, as predicted, Ulrich did not. He stopped walking, and looked up at Sissi, looking indifferent.

"Sissi, could you please get out of my way?"

Another odd chord was struck in Sissi's head, but she chose to ignore it and plow on. "Oh, not just yet, dear. We haven't spoken to each other in a while. I really miss our conversations."

Ulrich scowled for a moment- and then, suddenly, his expression lightened. He didn't look happy, but he didn't look mad, either. "Uh…yeah. Um…look, Sissi, I'm a little busy right now. Maybe later…?" He ducked away from Sissi's hand and tried to get away.

"'I'm a little busy right now'? 'Maybe later'?" She spun round and grabbed his shoulder. "Come on, Ulrich, this is no fun. Usually you have lots of funny things to say."

By now, Ulrich's gang had noticed that he was no longer trudging along with them, and had doubled back to where he had been taken captive. At first, Sissi didn't pay attention to them- at the moment, they were about as important as potatoes to her. But very quickly, she noticed that they were a lot less taunting then usual as well- they just stood there, quietly observing. It unnerved her a little more.

"I just don't feel like being funny right now, alright?" He shoved her hand away again. "Like I said, maybe later." He shrugged, nervously, and began to back away.

"Uh, but-"

"Sissi, please don't be difficult." It was a higher voice that cut in this time- Aelita. "We're just minding our own business."

Yumi gave a mumble of assent. Odd said "uh" a few times, and then went silent. Jeremie was nodding his head rather rapidly, toward a tree. He didn't entirely appear to be in focus. In fact, Sissi realized, he'd been out of it for a while now- at least a week, maybe more. They all had, really, but Jeremie most noticeably. Not all of it had been that bad, just unusual- he'd been out of his room more often, and he wasn't spending all his time on the stupid computer. But he was also spacing out a lot, and twitching at odd times. And he, all of them, were being a lot more tolerant of her than usual, for instance just now. Most of the time, they-

Her hourly ration of logical reason ran out, to be replaced by frustration. She growled, and balled her hands into fists. "Rrrrgh! You're not supposed to be acting like this!"

"L-like what?" Yumi answered. Several members of the group took a step back. "We're not-"

"Yes, you are!" she screamed back, whirling on Yumi. "You're not supposed to be letting me off easy! It doesn't work that way!"

There was a short silence. Jeremie and Aelita exchanged some uneasy glances, as did Odd and Yumi. Ulrich continued to back away. Sissi didn't understand it at all.

"You people are crazy!" She tightened her fists and stormed off, shoving Odd as she passed him. She didn't look back. She didn't want or need to.

Behind her, she could just barely hear voices. "I don't have any idea why she got so mad…" "Yeah, what did we do?" "We hardly insulted her once. It probably made her tiny mind explode." "That's a distinct possibility." "Well, yeah, but it just doesn't feel right, you know, ever since we heard about…"

The chatter died as she left range. Again, she was now wandering aimlessly, trying, as all humanity does, to escape confusion. Mentally, she seethed at Ulrich and his gang. She would never come to understand those five, honestly. They usually paid so much attention to her, though negative, but now, they didn't hesitate or sugarcoat that they wanted her gone. But, of course. They, their attitudes, seemed to change and shift with each coming day, never content with one concise definition for themselves. And they were always _together_- they were Kadic's most exclusive clique, hardly aware of half the school. It was downright creepy.

She had wandered quite a way, and seethed quite a bit, when she stopped, and looked around. She twitched- she didn't recognize where she was. She was in some part of the grounds forest- though that was no real help, as Kadic's forest was enormous. (Even when she had taken walks there as a child with her father, she had still managed to get lost a lot.) But, she had to try and get back to the main school at some point.

She looked around for a good landmark with which to place her location. Tree…tree…oddly knobbly tree…tree…discarded football…pothole…not a tree. She paused, surprised, to stare at something that did not quite look like it should be there.

A large, greyish mound of earth sat further on, its discoloration a standout against he green of the surrounding area. It was about a quarter foot high, several yards across, and full of odd, square shapes. Though it was hardly remarkable in any way, Sissi felt an odd curiosity toward it. She had never seen anything like it, and as, on the grounds, it was technically her property, she had to check it out. Tentatively, she walked ahead.

As she approached it, she realized it really was nothing remarkable- it was made up almost entirely of what looked like trash. It was mostly spare lumber, but here and there the remains of something more complex showed themselves- a chair leg, or the corner of a photo frame. It gave off an odd smell- most likely, all the wood rotting. She stared at it. What, of all things, was this big mess doing here? Why hadn't it been removed long ago? She had to tell her father about it when she got back. He'd have it out soon enough.

A beige piece of plastic near the edge stuck out amongst all the grey, one with a small design on it. Mildly curious, she dislodged it from under a board and picked it up. It was faded and worn, but a small bit of lettering, "n&Jerry's", was still legible. Ben&Jerry's. Ice cream.

"Depressing."

She dropped the plastic, which disappeared back into the heap unceremoniously, and swerved to her left. A tall, dark figure was now standing next to her, though she had not heard anyone approach. He wasn't looking at her, but at the heap, looking disappointed and (of all things) utterly bored. He didn't even seem to have noticed that she was there- it was as though he had spoken only to himself. She recognized him in an instant.

"William?" She tilted her head to the side. "Wha, where did you-?"

He ignored her. "Utterly, utterly depressing. The curse of sentimentality takes its toll on another perfectly worthwhile human mind."

He paused. Sissi opened her mouth, as if to ask a question, but he cut her off. "If they're really so keen on using their precious resources to destroy material possessions for such reasons as memories, then it's no wonder this planet's going downhill. Honestly." Without warning, he turned to face her. She gasped, but he retained a calm face. "I suppose you have memories here too. Good or bad, or maybe just forgotten. Hopefully forgotten."

Sissi twitched. "Well…" She looked back at the rubble. "I don't think I've ever seen this place before…and I don't really know why it's even here. I mean, come on, it's a junior high school, not a dumping ground." She kicked a bit of debris. William made an odd noise, as though he were stifling a laugh.

"I knew it." He smiled.

"And yet…" The smile instantly disappeared from his face as Sissi continued. "I don't know…it's like I've been here before. Many times. Maybe when I was little…before I could really remember. Maybe when it wasn't a trash heap. Maybe when it was really something." She smiled at the heap. "Do you think that might be true?"

"Mm hmm. Yeah. Sure." He looked away again, bored once more. Then, his expression perked. "Where is your mother, Sissi?"

"Wha?" Sissi took a step back- this wasn't the question she had expected. "Uh, I…well, she died. A long time ago…" She looked away again. William didn't hold back his laughter.

"Died a long time ago. How unfortunate." His face didn't match his words- he looked positively gleeful. "Do you miss her terribly? Think of her a lot?"

"Why's it so funny to you?" Sissi looked positively disgusted at his elation. William did not reply, but his smile disappeared, as though ordered to desist.

"Whatever." She turned away from him. "Answering your question…yes, I guess. I mean, well…" She held her hand to her heart, and looked at the ground. "A week ago, when Ulrich and his gang asked me about her…I would have told them, I really would, but I hardly knew anything about her myself. I didn't mean to run from them…but I was curious, and I wanted to know more. I went to my father…I asked all I could…" She sighed. "But he just said that he didn't like talking about her, and that he was busy."

She tightened her fist. "I wish I could say I missed her, but I don't know what there is to miss. I don't know her face, her personality…I can hardly remember her name. She should mean something to me…but she doesn't."

She continued to stare at the wreckage. William still didn't respond to her, but a small, self-satisfied smile returned to his face. He hummed to himself, a hum that was barely audible. They stood like this for a while, just staring.

After a while, however, Sissi, realizing something, did a double take. She whirled round at him.

"Hey, hold on a second! Why are you asking me all this? What are you even doing here? You've been acting weird for a long time, you know. You randomly vanished on some freakish vacation, then you came back as a dribbling moron, and now you're all creepy and you're speaking in riddles! What is _wrong _with you? Why can't you just be normal again?"

William raised his eyebrows. "Good question." He laughed again to himself. "I suppose it depends on which medicine I take in the morning."

"Which medi- oh, come on!" She turned away from the heap, back toward the forest. "I'm going back to the dorms. It's getting late."

"Take your time." She walked away. William did not follow.

* * *

He didn't move for quite a long time. He just stood there, staring at the sky, eyes narrowed. Eventually, his smile faded, and he groaned.

"_I don't know what there is to miss! Why can't you just be normal again?_" He laughed. "Foolish girl, fool of fools." When his mirth had ended, his face hardened, and he stared heavenward still.

"I really hope you heard that. Seriously. It should get you thinking about things for once."

The few, pink-streaked clouds did not move. Behind him, a knobbly tree swayed in a sudden breeze.

"Oh, be that way if you wish. But it's the truth, my dear. She doesn't care about you like you cared about her. Her own father, your dear true love, tries to hide you from her. You are nothing to them, something better tossed behind the bush and forgotten."

The tree rocked violently, another tree or two joining its angered dance. Some very motion-sick squirrels fell out of them, and ran in circles round them, waiting for them to stop.

"Ah, but you see, I won the bet. One human cannot change the world. Oh, you tried, I know that well. Your mysterious ways, your oh-so-offbeat actions, your infinite knowledge of this world's rules…crushed. Nothing. Not even to the two most important people in your life. Your existence, like all other human existences, was a useless joke. Your…noble sacrifice…" His tone took on a hint of sarcasm. "…was buried and forgotten."

A squirrel threw an acorn at his thigh. He ignored it, along with the ever louder noises of the wind and trees.

"But I? I will live forever. I have all the time in the world to create my true significance, and all the power to do so. I cannot be overthrown. I cannot be defeated. And if five little children really do think they have the gall to save every day in the way they do…" He smiled wickedly. "They are in for a surprise in a very short time."

A strong wind blew past him now, mussing his hair and clothes. He brushed one lock from his face, nonchalant.

"Oh, you really think that, don't you?"

Another short puff blew past.

"Perhaps there really is nothing more I can do to you. But, you know, your husband and daughter are still alive…"

A particularly violent tree whacked him across the back with a thick branch. He whirled round, seething.

"They have to die at some point, you know!" He growled at it, and then calmed. "Ah, yes. Well, if I haven't convinced you, I suppose I'll leave you be. Your opinions matter no more, not even to the humans and their standards of importance."

The wind's fervor died a bit, but it still manipulated the trees and their movement. One squirrel bravely shot up the knobbly tree, ran into a hole, and huddled there, afraid.

"Why? 'Cause you're _dead_, you stupid woman. And I think you are aware that the dead…" He reached into his pocket. "Tell no tales."

He pulled his hand out. In it lay the withered stem of a plant, fruitless, thin, and dying. He clutched it tightly in his sweaty hand, and brought it to his face. "But, do I have a tale to tell you tonight."

He held the wilting stem above his head, and waited. As it lay in the wind, one could see that it changed as it was held- small leaves had unfurled from its sides, thorns had sprung from its depths, and at its top, a mauve-hued bud had formed, curled, and burst, revealing a maze of petals and dew. A rose, and a beautiful one at that.

Even as it had finished its sudden bloom, becoming more lush by the moment, William held it still. He took a deep breath.

"A rose for the fallen, by your human traditions, a salute well made and so very fitting. A harmless blip in the sequence of the living, lovely to see yet so easy to ignore, quite flamboyant but hardly significant. Its color will fade, its petals will drop, and its thorns will dull and shrivel. Once it has found the ground, it will never again rise. I offer it to you, for it is your company and friend, nay, your very likeness, in both the human standard of beauty and in intelligence. Come, watch this wilt onnyour silent ruins forever, unseen and unnoticed, a tribute to nothing."

He lowered his hand to eye level, and sneered at its contents. Roughly, with a dark, unloving vigor, he held the plant to his lips, and kissed its center. "Lovingly infused with that passion you value so."

He tossed the flower onto the rubble. It fell onto the beige carton of Ben&Jerry's, and lay there, undisturbed by the wind. William smiled at it with a mock sweetness. "A bittersweet irony, it really is."

Still smiling, he turned from the heap, and walked away.

He was not nearly as elated as he looked- quite the opposite. Stupid humans, he thought to himself. Stupid, stupid, stupid. So thickheaded, so determined in their ideas of right and wrong and truth and justice and who knew how much…it was a hopeless cause to show them reason. And some were such brilliant spirits…his own father…the boy, Jeremie…but they had that unfortunate handicap of humanity saddled with them.

Jeremie. Twelve years ago, as he had watched from his prison as Franz Hopper fell to his hypothetical knees, begging for mercy, he saw Jeremie for the first time. He had come from the future, sent- oh, the irony!- by himself. He had been prepared to give vital information to Franz and stop the little virus he then was. But, Jeremie was shuttled on home before he could do anything, and the timeline had gone on as it should have. He had thought long and hard about young Jeremie. He had thought, when the appointed time had come, that he would simply not send him to June 6, 1994, therefore not telling Franz about his evil intent, so that, in the past, XANA could catch him off guard. Possibly even destroy him.

He thought this for a long time. But, as time went on, he had become an older, wiser virus. He learned about time, and its paradoxes. He learned that if he did not send Jeremie back, then he would never have known not to in the first place. And if he had not known, he would have sent him back, meaning he would have known…

He did not want to mess with time, he had eventually decided. As a superior intelligence, he was not bound by the chains of humanity- jobs, taxes, even death had loosed his grasp on him. But, as a part of reality, he was still under the dominion of time. It was an unbreakable force, and the idea of meddling with it belonged only to the imaginations of humans.

In all these musings, William had exited the Kadic grounds. He was on the streets now, walking on the edge of a sodden ribbon that was the river Seine. He looked down at it as he walked. It was blue in spots, but in others it was only the dull grey of pollutant. In the middle of this river sat the factory, his birthplace, his home, and his final destination. A place created by the enemy. He, XANA, created by the enemy.

Perhaps, he thought, he did have to give humanity some credit. They were a part of this coincidental universe, like himself, and therefore had to be there for some logical reason. Their emotions, beliefs, sympathies…maybe they did mean something, in the scope of things. They did make existence interesting to the humans, after all. If they didn't come up with any silly ideas about religion or politics, they would be bored out of their minds, quite like he was much of the time.

And besides, as he had told himself many, many times, if they, or even only their shortcomings did not exist, his purpose, that being to eradicate them, would be pointless. And a pointless purpose, after all, simply was not logical.

**THE END

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…

….

I'm…I'm done?

I'M DONE! Oh my god, I never thought I'd get here. It's…It's…it's a lot of hours typing, that's what it is, but…it is. Holy cow.

But, I have to write my story-ending speech, as per tradition…first things first. Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU ALL for all the kind words, reviews, and all that! I especially want to mention some people. First and foremost, **Stonecreek**, my beta from Ch. 13 onwards…I cannot come up with words to express my gratitude for all he's helped me with. Without his input, talent, constructive criticism and patience, this story would be…well…not good. Next, **Tetsu, **for being awesome and for knowing what Johnny the Homicidal Maniac is, **Grave Bells **for being awesome and a good artist, **Hiraku, **for being awesome AND a pwnsome writer (and for calling me a friend), **The Mad shoe1** for being awesome and sticking with the story from Day 1, and all the rest of you whose names I know but am too lazy to go back and check, for being awesome. I love you all (gives you all even MORE cookies)

…so, what am I gonna do next? First, I'm gonna go do my homework. Mmyep. Well, fanfic-wise, I'm going to go back over the whole story and do a major editing job. The earliest chapters were okay, but they are nowhere near up to par with later ones. There are plot holes to be filled, jokes to be added…some that need to be completely redone. It's not that I think they're bad, they just need improvement. (Except Chapter 7. Chapter 7 was bad. Just…don't read it. Please.) If you don't think I should edit for some reason, please tell me. I likes input.

After all that's done with, or maybe near the end, I'm gonna start my next story, "The Dunbar Element", which is slightly shorter and a bit less epic. Somewhere in there, I need to do a non-CL giftfic for my boyfriend, maybe a few one-shots (funny, hopefully- I don't write enough funny), and, yes, an RTTP follow-up story, which I'll start near the end of Element. With the new CL movie thing coming out in 2009, I'll have plenty of time.

Again, thank you all so freaking much, and see you all next time!

- Carth


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